Industrial segment in the State is racing ahead in solar rooftop installations. The segment contributed 34 MW to the total rooftop capacity.

After achieving some remarkable progress in wind energy, Tamil Nadu seems to be scripting a success story in rooftop solar segment.

The State has outperformed all its peers in rooftop solar installations. As of October 2015, India’s rooftop solar installations stood at 525 MW. With installed capacity of 76 MW, Tamil Nadu topped the rooftop solar capacity addition in the country, according to a report of Bridge to India, a global renewable energy consulting firm.

Industrial segment in the State is racing ahead in solar rooftop installations. The segment contributed 34 MW to the total rooftop capacity of the State.

This development should provide some relief to the Energy Department in the State as increasing adoption of rooftop solar in industrial segment will result in slow rise in power consumption. Commercial and residential segments in the State contributed 23 MW and 19 MW respectively.

“Tamil Nadu’s sterling performance, especially in the industrial segment, can be attributed to high consumer awareness, high industrial and commercial tariffs, and wide gap between energy demand and supply in the highly industrialised State,” said Vinay Rustagi, Managing Director, Bridge to India.

Industry experts pointed out that the shortfall in power supply in the State as well as fast approaching nationwide grid parity (the cost of power generated by the rooftop system is less than or equivalent to the cost of power from the electricity board) for all rooftop segments, particularly the commercial and industrial segments were also the key factors for robust growth in rooftop solar installations in the industrial category.

Tamil Nadu is one of the 14 States that have achieved grid parity (without accelerated depreciation benefit) in the industrial rooftop segment. For commercial rooftop also, Tamil Nadu is ranked among the top States in achievement of grid parity.

The other leading States are Maharashtra (54MW), Gujarat (44 MW) and Uttar Pradesh (36MW).