India's rooftop solar installations exceed 1 GW in a record first half of 2024

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India's rooftop solar installations exceed 1 GW in a record first half of 2024

India's rooftop solar installations exceed 1 GW in a record first half of 2024

Industry News
Aug 30,24

India added 1.1 gigawatts (GW) of rooftop solar capacity in the first half (1H) of calendar year (CY) 2024, the highest 1H installations to date. Installations rose 26% year-over-year (YoY) compared to the 873 MW installed in 1H 2023, according to Mercom India's newly released Q2 2024 India Rooftop Solar Market Report.

In the second quarter (Q2) of 2024, 731 MW of rooftop solar systems were installed, the highest amount of new quarterly capacity and an increase of almost 89% YoY compared to 388 MW in Q2 2023. Installations were up more than 99% quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) compared to 367 MW in Q1 2024.

The growth in installations during the first half (1H) and Q2 of 2024 was largely driven by increased residential rooftop solar capacity under the PM—Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PM—Surya Ghar). Residential solar installations surged by almost 923% quarter-over-quarter (QoQ), making up over 72% of the projects commissioned during the quarter.

The industrial segment accounted for over 23% of the quarterly installations. Commercial and government segments accounted for 4% and 0.7% of capacity additions, respectively.

"The rooftop solar sector in India is finally taking off, largely due to the Prime Minister's rooftop solar initiative, which has sparked unprecedented consumer interest. After overcoming initial setbacks, we can anticipate consistently higher installation rates in the residential segment moving forward. Nevertheless, the success of the program could be hindered by domestic module availability, component shortages, and escalating costs if these issues are not resolved," said Raj Prabhu, CEO, Mercom Capital Group.

Gujarat, Maharashtra, Kerala, Uttar Pradesh, and Tamil Nadu led rooftop solar capacity additions in Q2 2024. The top five states accounted for over 81% of installations in Q2.

As of June 2024, India had a cumulative installed rooftop solar capacity of 11.6 GW.

The top 10 states contributed over 78% of cumulative rooftop solar installations as of June 2024. Gujarat, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Kerala, and Karnataka remained at the forefront in terms of cumulative installed rooftop solar capacity during the quarter.

Kerala registered the highest compounded quarterly growth rate of nearly 9% between Q2 2023 and Q2 2024.

In Q2 2024, rooftop solar tenders amounting to 533.6 MW were issued, down nearly 35% from 816.9 MW in Q1 2024 and a 259% jump compared to 148.6 MW in Q2 2023. Empanelment tenders to install rooftop solar on government buildings accounted for over 38% of the quarter's announcements.

The average cost of rooftop solar systems increased by more than 12% quarter-over-quarter (QoQ) after six consecutive quarters of decline, largely due to the growing use of modules that meet domestic content requirements. Despite this, the average cost remained nearly 10% lower year-over-year (YoY).