According to an independent study by Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW) and BSES Yamuna Power Limited, households owning rooftop solar systems could save up to 95 per cent on their electricity bills.
However, in-spite of falling cost by 27 % and despite a 30 % government subsidy, households have installed only about 400 MW of rooftop solar across the country (and 60 MW in Delhi).
Key challenges for residential consumers include high capital cost, lack of access to finance, lack of consumer awareness, issues with roof ownership and access, and a roof lock-in period of 25 years, according to the report released at the CEEW Renewable Energy Dialogue 2018.
Even if the rooftop solar installation on a flat, and managed by the community, it could also save up to 35 per cent of the electricity bills. The savings have been estimated over the 25-year lifetime of these systems, the report added.
This report has suggested three innovative models- community solar model, on-bill financing model and a solar partner model. The new models suggested in the report include easy financing and introduce the concept of solar subscription plans.
It also gives consumers a unique way to pay for the solar installation via financing on their monthly bills.
“The on-bill financing model allows consumers to pay the cost of the rooftop solar system through savings on electricity bill over a duration of 7-8 years,” CEEW said.
The report also pointed to the creation of jobs in the sector. Rooftop solar employs seven times more people than utility-scale solar for every megawatt installed, it said.
“In 2017-18, rooftop solar created nearly 14,000 jobs for about 1 GW capacity compared to nearly 15,000 jobs created for about 8.5 GW of utility solar. Overall, over 300,000 new workers could join India’s solar sector by 2022.”