How can you start the business in solar energy in India?

You well know, Solar Energy is an absolute free energy obtaining from the sun. sun has unlimited and never-ending energy.    In the electricity production, we are using water and coal. these are limited resources for coal and water on the earth. if we spend all of our coal and water what will happen. So sun is an option to get energy.  

Well, this is an interesting question for all Indians because solar is the most happening area now with a lot of focus and interest shown by the present Indian government. Pm Modi is focusing very much on solar power and it is good for future. 

If you are planning to start the business in solar power, it will good for you as well as the country.  The question is quite broad since there are various types of people like the EPC, solar panel manufacturers, solar panel buyer all of these can come into the solar business. However, the front face of it is the EPC.

The government of India has a target of deploying 100 GW of Solar Energy system by the year 2021–22 of which 40 GW is to come from Grid connected rooftop system. This is a quite ambitious target considering the current capacity of around 13 GW. To achieve this, MNRE has announced a subsidy of 30 % on benchmark cost for general category states & UTs while 70 % subsidy for Special category states which include North-eastern states, J&K, Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Lakshadweep, Andaman& Nicobar Islands. The subsidy is offered for all except commercial and Industrial establishments with project capacity of 1 to 500 kW.

Since CFA is provided by MNRE, very limited number of states are providing their own subsidy. Below is a list of subsidy offered in all the states of India. Any modifications or suggestions are welcome.

Legal :

There is no special legal procedure to start the solar business, This business is the same as manufacturing startup all the regular compliance are to be followed.

Subsidies:

As an EPC player, you need to be very well aware of how to claim subsidies through MNRE the Indian body for all solar related approvals. As an EPC you mostly would like to sell your projects as they complete so you can attract buyers only if you are capable of getting the subsidy.

Plan your Project size: 

Decide where you want to operate at. There are several kinds of EPC’s who do Mega Watt Scale like Enkay Solar, Vikram solar etc. Kilowatt players who do roof top’s there are a lot of them and home scale installation. Decide where you want to position yourself.

Identify a project:

1. the first step will be to identify a potential project location and an execution plan. For this, you need to identify somebody who is willing to offer you his land for lease or an institution that wants to convert it's rooftop to solar.
2. Next step is to prepare an investment plan and an ROI plan. This is a very detailed exercise you need ample amount of experience here or you need to hire a solar designer. Just a glimpse of what happens here is they use software like “PV Sys” which has enormous data based to give you out a generation plan. PV Sys needs a lot of input to drive it in terms of the components used to make up the solar plant. This generation plan tells you what is going to be the return per day which you then extrapolate to find the ROI. Eventually, this will come up with the Plan.
3. Get approval for the capacity from the regulatory authority which will be the utility company (BESCOM, TNEB etc..) if you are planning to sell it to the Utility. The other option is open access where you consume the power generated.(Open Access | INDIAN POWER SECTOR). Next is to lock down the rates. This is very important as your whole plan’s success depends on this. The present rate is around 4.5 to 5.5 Rupees per unit.

Identify a buyer/investor:

It is now time to sell your plan to a prospective buyer for your solar project.(In the case of Rooftop installation you just have to convince the company of the plan). once you identify a buyer or investor is when you taste your first success.

Implement the plan:

Now you need to call for bids from the suppliers you identified in your design stage and come up with a plan. IN SOLAR things go ahead very tight schedule especially when you are planning to pump to grids. Slipping by a date might lead you to lose the rate that you locked eventually making the business a loss. So you have to make sure everything is put in place properly.

Here you will need Solar module suppliers, Solar Inverter Suppliers (InPhase - The Power People .. I’m part of this company, ABB, Schneider, SMA), Solar Tracking (Nuvve Solar, Solar Track..), HT Installation and commissioning services and some civil contracts. You have to align all this in line and then get it going.

Complete the sale:

Rarely do EPC’s hold their own sites mostly they sell it off. In this case, they would make the handover to the investor or complete the project with their own fund and later sell it to a prospective buyer.

Caution: EPC business is like walking in the rope activity we have to be very careful. Many businesses have wound up..huge name Enkay Solar Power so make a cautious well-balanced move.