Highlights

India’s new solar capacity addition was badly hit due to the pandemic. The nation installed just 2.32 GW during the first nine months of the year. However, there was a silver lining too!

Ankit Kapasi and Kishore Ganesan from SOFIES India are working on Solar Waste Action Plan (SWAP) project in India, which is looking to investigate both the technical and economic feasibility of a PV module recycling system in the country. The pilot has been funded by Signify Foundation and Doen Foundation. The team at Sofies is working closely with technology partner Poseidon Solar and has recently established the first PV recycling pilot plant in September 2020. The duo spoke to pv magazine about their plant’s techno-commercial feasibility and the Indian eco-system’s readiness for PV module recycling.

The Solar Energy Corporation of India, NTPC, NHPC and other state-owned organizations have been directed to reduce RE contracts’ performance security from 5-10% to 3% of the contract value under the Finance ministry’s order dated November 12, 2020

Researchers in Finland have demonstrated the technical feasibility of an off-grid residential PV system combined with short-term battery storage and seasonal hydrogen storage. The proposed model is applicable only to northern climates, as higher levels of solar radiation in southern locations would mean a reduced need for seasonal storage. It was tested in an existing single-family house in Finland with a 21 kW rooftop array and a ground source 6 kW heat pump.

The 919.73 kWp captive solar plant at the module manufacturer’s Falta unit in West Bengal uses multiple PV technology advancements, including its own SOMERA monocrystalline, half-cut and full-cut cell panels. 

The National Solar Energy Federation of India and Vietnam Clean Energy Association signed the pact to exchange best practices and explore business opportunities in solar energy. 

The solar electricity price in India has dipped further to an all-time low of INR 1.99/kWh in a 500 MW Gujarat auction held recently, which is 0.5% lower than the previous record of INR 2/kWh set a month ago.

Bids are invited to supply an aggregate 6,568,000 quantity of five-busbar multicrystalline and mono-crystalline PERC silicon solar cells in peak output ratings of 4.62Wp, 4.67Wp, 4.72Wp, 5.27Wp, 5.44Wp and 5.62Wp. The delivery period is three months.

The work includes consultancy for demand aggregation and implementation of 1060 MW of grid-connected rooftop solar PV systems. Applications can be submitted until January 1, 2021.

An analysis by India Ratings and Research (Ind-Ra) says improvements in PV panel designs and costs, lower financing costs, and state-specific sectors such as the location’s solar potential and certain waivers have driven the decline in Indian solar tariffs.