India ROUND-UP: Weather and low cost power portals, Maharashtra 2GW tenders, Tamil net metering cuts

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email

Piyush Goyal launches weather and lowest cost power Portals

Credit: Government of India

Energy minister Piyush Goyal has launched a new 'Weather Portal' for the power sector aiming to help distribution companies (Discoms) to manage power supply and plan infrastructure availability in response to extreme weather.

An Indian government release said heat waves, cold waves, wind storms and floods can dramatically affect production means or the electrical grid. Therefore the portal provides regional weather summaries, updated forecasts every three hours and projections for the next six days.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Unlock unlimited access for 12 whole months of distinctive global analysis

Photovoltaics International is now included.

  • Regular insight and analysis of the industry’s biggest developments
  • In-depth interviews with the industry’s leading figures
  • Unlimited digital access to the PV Tech Power journal catalogue
  • Unlimited digital access to the Photovoltaics International journal catalogue
  • Access to more than 1,000 technical papers
  • Discounts on Solar Media’s portfolio of events, in-person and virtual

Or continue reading this article for free

Goyal has also launched a second portal named 'MERIT' (Merit Order Despatch of Electricity for Rejuvenation of Income and Transparency). This will facilitate must-run status for hydro power and renewables as well as transparency in the clean energy market.Goyal has previoulsy condemned Discoms for failing to implement the priority status for renewable energy plants.

The government stated: “It will also promote competition for lower costs as information will be available to all stakeholders including generators and utilities for more efficient procurement. Since the information will be available to all consumers on continuous basis it will create pressure on utilities for continued efficiency.”

Maharashtra 2GW of solar tenders

The Maharashtra State Power Generation Company (MAHAGENCO) has invited expressions of interest for the development of a 500MW solar park in Dondaicha, according to Mercom Capital Group.

MAHAGENCO has also invited expressions of interest for the 1.5GW solarisation of agricultural feeders in the state, with projects ranging from 2-50MW in size.

Tamil Nadu ‘drastic’ net metering cuts

The Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) has planned cuts to net-metering for solar consumers.

Mercom Capital Group reported that TANGEDCO included recent record low tariffs as one of the reasons for the proposed cuts. The state has a 3.5GW rooftop target for 2022, but has so far installed just 91MW.

A Mercom release stated: “The most important aspect of TANGEDCO’s proposal is to reset the net-metering tariff by calculating a rate of 50% of the lowest solar tender during the previous financial year, or set the rate of 50% of the solar preferential tariff issued by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Regulatory Commission (TNERC) corresponding to the financial year, whichever is less.”

Current rates are between INR6.63-7.23/kWh under various categories, but, if the plans are adopted, these could see a “drastic reduction” to between INR2.20-2.55/kWh.

In recent news, although Tamil Nadu’s latest 1.5GW large-scale solar tender had seen significant oversubscription with 3,774.5MW of submissions, most of the key solar players in India did not participate.

Read Next

July 25, 2025
A round-up of news from the Indian solar sector this week, including Reliance Industries' cell plant, Juniper Green Energy powering solar PV and Solex Energy launching new modules.
July 25, 2025
According to a report from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), the global levelised cost of electricity (LCOE) for solar PV reached US$0.043/kWh in 2024.
July 22, 2025
Spanish independent power producer (IPP) Zelestra  has begun commercial operations at its 435MWdc Gorbea solar project in the state of Rajasthan, India. 
July 17, 2025
Indian solar manufacturers are among the targets of a new petition filed by US producers alleging illegal trade practices by overseas firms.
July 15, 2025
Indian renewable energy company SAEL Industries is developing a 5GW solar cell and 5GW module manufacturing facility in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh.
July 11, 2025
Indian independent power producer (IPP) Juniper Green Energy has commissioned an additional 71MWp at Chapalgaon Solar Project in Solapur, Maharashtra.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Media Partners, Solar Media Events
September 2, 2025
Mexico City, Mexico
Solar Media Events
September 16, 2025
Athens, Greece
Solar Media Events
September 30, 2025
Seattle, USA
Solar Media Events
October 1, 2025
London, UK
Solar Media Events
October 2, 2025
London,UK