UT installs its first solar plant at pvt residence

Rajinder Nagarkoti

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, August 17

The UT Administration has now installed its first solar photovoltaic plant (SPV) at a private residence under the gross metering system.

The plant was installed at House No. 1241, Sector 18, owned by a senior advocate of the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Puneet Jindal.

While talking to Chandigarh Tribune, Puneet Jindal said the plant was of 5 kW and with the installation of the plant he wanted to encourage city residents to go for solar power.

Brhamesh Alipuria, CEO of Direct Watts, who installed the solar plant, said the plant was installed at a cost of Rs 4.80 lakh and the UT Administration would pay Rs 8.51 per unit to the owner. The plant will generate around 7,500 unit annually and after 6 to 7 years the plant will recover its installation cost. No repair was required for the plant. The owner will only have to clean its plates with water, he said.

UT Adviser Vijay Kumar Dev said they would encourage the residents to come forward to install the solar projects.

According to information, in the coming days, the UT will install 70 more such solar plants (Nine under the gross metering and 61 under the net metering system) at private residences. At present, the solar projects were installed atop government buildings and government residences only.

Santosh Kumar, Director, Science and Technology Department and CEO, Chandigarh, Renewable Energy Science and Technology Promotion Society (CREST), said the Administration was offering 15 per cent subsidy till August 31 and all details pertaining to solar energy could be taken from the official website of CREST, he said.

MP Singh, UT’s Superintending Engineer (Electricity), said they were working in collaboration with CREST to promote solar energy in the city.

Recently, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) had also revised the UT solar power generation target from 30 to 100 MW by the end of 2022.

The UT has so far installed rooftop SPV plants having an overall capacity of 5.3 MW on 50 government buildings.

Two policies in city

In Chandigarh, there are two policies for the installation of a solar power meter — the net metering system and the gross metering system. The net metering has the export-import feature in which a consumer first uses the power generated from the plant and then exports to the grid, while the gross metering means the consumer sells directly to the government whatever solar power is produced.

Solar power tariff

For 2015-16, the JERC has fixed Rs 8.51 per unit (for plants which were installed without availing the subsidy) for 1 kW to 500 kWp. With the subsidy (15 per cent), the tariff ranges from Rs 6.14 to Rs 7.31 per unit

For the above 500 kWp plants, the JERC has fixed Rs 8.31 per unit (for the plants which were installed without availing the subsidy) as the solar tariff. With the subsidy (15 per cent), the tariff ranges from Rs 5.94 to Rs 7.05 per unit

Dynamics of a solar power project

What one needs

A roof or an open space of 120 sq ft to place the panels on metal frames for a 1 kW plant.

Power produced

I kW plant produces 1,500 units in a year. It is sufficient to run three fans, four lights, a refrigerator, a television and a computer.

System components

Solar photovoltaic panels on the roof, an inverter and a suitable battery for solar charging. Cleaning is required after every 15 days. A solar power plant without a battery is more feasible for a place like Chandigarh where there are a few power cuts.

How long will the system work

The life of a solar power plant is of at least 25 years, with the power production ability degrading slightly, beginning from 10th year onwards.

Subsidy

The UT is offering 15 per cent subsidy till August 31.