The Indian Solar Industry: It's Time To Think Differently

After facing a sluggish market in 2018, the Indian solar industry needs innovative approaches to drive sustainable growth.

The year 2018 was not a particu-larly good one for the Indian solar sector, with respect to growth. That sluggishness has continued into the first part of 2019 due to the general elections as well as challenges like the implementation of the Goods & Services tax (GST), the safeguard duty, compliance with BIS standards, sudden changes in the solar park development policy, below-par participation and cancellation of tenders, non-implementation of much heralded schemes like SRISTI (Sustainable Rooftop Installation for Solar Transfiguration of India) and KUSUM (Kisan Urja Suraksha evam Utthaan Mahabhiyan), etc. However, the industry can ensure long-term sustainable growth if it adopts certain emerging business models and innovative technologies like floating solar power projects, even while addressing challenges like PV waste management.

Market scenario

In 2018, the growth of the Indian solar industry was slightly weaker in comparison to the previous years. According to a Bridge To India (BTI) report, total installed utility-scale solar and rooftop solar capacity in the country reached 24.20GW and 3.85GW respectively, by the end of December 2018.