Roof-top solar PV involves huge sum for domestic consumer

Roof-top solar PV involves huge sum for a domestic consumer, in the range of 1.00 lakh for 1KW solar, 2.4 lakhs for 3 KW. To get subsidy from central and state government, pay first and get after is the norm. Even the savings from monthly electricity bill will hardly meet EMI payment of the aforesaid investment, if borrowed as loan from bank. I think domestic power consumer will not be enthused by the present scenario of the government policies either by central or state government. It is like operation success, but patient dead. Policy is good and guidelines and procedures to implement that policy is cumbersome to the domestic power user. Each state government declares their own guidelines and incentives which much more confusing both to the supplier and end user. It may take a year or two to see the forecast mentioned in the discussion to come true.

The estimate of 200000 homes by 2018 may have to be corrected IF government decides to frame a policy adopting feed in tariff. It is the inertia of governments to apply their mind to raise solar generation. Inertia can be attributed to the erroneous thinking about power generation and consumption. Government of India/ states should realize that India’s coal reserve is depleting faster and we may reach a critical situation if not dead end in a few decades.

Let me briefly describe feed in tariff just to start with.
Tariff (FIT) IT, in brief, is a policy mechanism designed to accelerate investment in renewable energy technologies. FIT guarantee that anyone who generate electricity from renewable energy source - home owner, small business or large electricity utility-is able to sell that electricity into the utility grid and receive guaranteed long term payments for energy transferred at a predetermined rate. This preferential rate is fixed considering the benefit the society and the utility get from this renewable energy. It is not a FREE GIFT to the producer as understood.
The tariff could be set in two parts – one payable to producer by the utility and the other payable by the Government (Centre/State) to the utility. The second part would seek to reimburse the utility for what it has already paid to the producer. First priority is to motivate investors.