India's solar power capacity has reached the 10 GW milestone. The threefold rise in the country's installed solar power capacity has come in three years. By the end of 2014, a capacity of 3,000 MW was installed in India. The milestone was achieved with the National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) commissioning 45 MW solar power plant capacity at Bhadla Solar Park (see NTPC Commissions 45 MW At Bhadla).
India now has over 14 GW of solar power projects currently under development, and about 6 GW is to be auctioned soon, according to digital daily Swarajyamag.com.
Referring to government and market data, Indian business newspaper The Economic Times' Energyworld says power generated from renewable power projects rose over 26% during the 11-month period in 2016-2017, as compared to more than 5% generated through conventional sources in the same period.
In January 2017, official data from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) showed that the cumulative installed PV capacity of the country as of December 31, 2016 was 9,012.66 MW. It would mean new capacity additions of 1 GW in the first two months of 2017.
Solar power contributes to generating 1% of the total energy mix. In terms of renewables, its share is now 14.5%, according to consulting firm Mercom Capital Group.
In the current fiscal year alone, the government is aiming to have an installed solar power capacity of 12 GW. It is expecting over 11 GW of new capacity to be commissioned by March 2017 (see India Adds 14.3 GW Renewables).
The highest installed solar energy capacity is in Tamil Nadu, followed by Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Telangana, Madhya Pradesh and Punjab.
Recently, the Government of India made its intentions clear about giving priority to solar power as it increased the targeted solar power capacity by 2020 (see India Doubles Solar Park Capacity Target To 40 GW).
The country has already tendered over 1 GW of new PV capacity in the current calendar year (see India Tenders 1 GW In First 2 Months Of 2017).
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