House Owners To Get Rooftop Solar Panels For Free Soon

The Chandigarh government plans to implement the Renewable Energy Service Company (RESCO) model, which will involve a private company developing, installing, financing, and running a rooftop solar power plant.

House owners in Chandigarh will soon be able to get rooftop solar plants installed for free. The UT administration plans to use the Renewable Energy Service Company (RESCO) model, in which a private company develops, installs, finances, and operates a rooftop solar power plant.

While customers (homeowners) will not be charged for installation, RESCO will own the rooftop solar plants for 15 years before handing them over to the consumer. During the 15-year period, the consumer will be entitled to power at a rate of 1.5 cents per unit less than the standard rate.

In addition, after use at the house, the extra electricity generated will be transmitted to the grid and paid for by the department. RESCO and the consumer will split the revenue generated from the sale of electricity to the department.

Wait for JERC’s approval

The RESCO model will soon be implemented in the city, according to Debendra Dalai, director of Chandigarh Renewable Energy, and Science and Technology Promotion Society, with the UT electricity department already on board and only the formal nod of the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commissioner awaiting.

After the subsidy scheme failed to motivate people to install solar plants, CREST recommended the RESCO concept last year. It had submitted the RESCO model for JERC approval after receiving approval from the administration.

It has also produced a sample agreement – the Quadripartite Agreement (QPA) – that the RESCO, consumer, CREST, and the electrical department would sign. JERC must accept the agreement, which will establish the power rate for consumers, RESCO's functions and responsibilities, the costs involved, and the roles of CREST and the electrical department.

"The company that quotes the minimum built-operate-transfer (BOT) period, that is, after which time it would hand over the facility to the owner, will get the task during the bidding procedure for a firm to be classified as RESCO,” said an official.

The electrical department has agreed to the RESCO model, the terms and conditions under the quadripartite agreement, with the exception of a provision relating to power banking, in its submission to the JERC. After resolving the issue of power banking, CREST and the electrical department have stated that they will submit an initialized QPA to the commission for consideration within a week.