Haryana brings perky policy for Solar Sector emphasizes on Rooftop Solar

The Haryana Government aims to generate 4,000-megawatt clean power using solar energy by 2022. To achieve the promising plan the government has braced a Solar Power Policy 2016 during the concluding day of the two-day ‘Happening Haryana Global Investors Summit’ in Gurgaon. The new policy aims to promote generation of green and clean power through a conducive atmosphere for the investors.

To stir the indigenous solar sector, incentives such as industrial status, exemption in change of land use approval, electricity duty, and banking facility and cross subsidy charges has been asserted in the policy.

For setting up solar projects within Haryana,  the policy provides price preference of two per cent will be given as per the policy and sale of power to Haryana government or to the third party is permitted without levying of any charges. The policy will also promote small investors by reserving 20 per cent of the target for the projects of capacity of one megawatt to two megawatt.

The government has also decided to purchase solar power over and above the solar Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) subject to a limit of 200 megawatts.

Commenting on the development, Ankur Gupta, principal secretary, renewable energy department, Haryana, said in a statement that the policy encourages setting up of solar parks and installation of solar power plants on canals tops and banks.

Due to land scarcity, the policy gives special amenities to rooftop solar power projects allowing the sale of power to government at the last lowest discovered tariff without tendering. Further, rooftop solar power plants can be set up without any permission from the building plan sanctioning authority and the transmission line for evacuation of solar power will also be provided by power utilities free of cost. The policy has also kept a provision for the installation of Agricultural Solar Powered Pump sets to meet water or irrigation energy needs. The surplus power generation from the solar pump sets might be bought by the Haryana Power Purchase Centre at average power purchase cost.