India to disappoint with 2014 solar capacity but add 1.8 GW in 2015

Nov 19, 2014 - The total solar capacity additions in India for 2014 are seen to reach 800 MW, which is a lot less than previously expected, but in 2015 installations could jump to 1,800 MW, a new report says.

In September, US green energy researcher Mercom Capital Group LLC revised down its 2014 projections for solar installations in India to about 900 MW from 1,000 MW due to delays caused by certain major developments including the country’s anti-dumping case. In its quarterly update published yesterday, the company said that 2014 will be a year of disappointment for the Indian solar market since additions will be lower even compared with its revised forecast, going down 20% on the year.

Since the start of the year, the country has installed already 734 MW and there is a bit more to be completed. In calendar 2013, it added a total of 1,004 MW of solar capacity.

Still, India’s solar sector is now “visibly upbeat” and Mercom projects that solar installations will more than double in 2015 to around 1,800 MW. “Recent cancellations of coal mining licenses by the Supreme Court amid rising coal imports and increasing costs, and continuing power shortages have all contributed to the positive momentum in the solar sector,” said Raj Prabhu, co-founder and CEO of Mercom.

So far, India has reached a total installed solar capacity of over 3,000 MW. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) recently unveiled plant to achieve 100,000 MW in five years. Unlike other solar markets which are more and more focusing on the deployment of residential and commercial rooftop projects, India is promoting large-scale projects with capacities reaching 1,000 MW. Mercom pointed out that this “may not be a sound long-term strategy” given the country’s transmission and distribution losses and the issues related to land availability and grid infrastructure.

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