MNRE Adds 402 MW of Solar Cell Capacity to ALMM, Total Nears 38 GW

Bihar Proposes 500 kW Cap for Rooftop Solar Net Metering

Soleos Energy Files Draft Papers for Initial Public Offering

Daily News Wrap-Up: India’s Transmission Plan Faces Execution Test

EU Solar-Storage Jobs Near 1 Million Mark, Manufacturing Employment Dips

PetroGreen Subsidiaries Secure $20 Million for 40 MW Solar Project

Fengate Asset Management Closes Acquisition of Accelergen Energy

Kanpur Packaging Manufacturer Installs Rooftop Solar to Cut Power Costs

TERI Announces Winner of 115 MWh Battery Storage Auction

Power Ministry Revises RoW Compensation Rules for Transmission Lines

<table id="amazon-polly-audio-table">
						<tr>
						<td id="amazon-polly-audio-tab">
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-label">Listen to this article</div>
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-container">
			<audio class="amazon-ai-player" id="amazon-ai-player" preload="none" controls controlsList="nodownload" >
				<source type="audio/mpeg" src="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/amazon_polly_106308.mp3?version=1791261514">
			</audio>
		</div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-subscribe-tab"></div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-by-tab"></div>
						</td>
						</tr>
					</table>The share of new residential solar systems paired with battery storage systems in the U.S. increased to 37% in 2025 from 25% in 2024, according to a new <a href="https://www.lbl.gov/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory</a> report.
California drove the increase, although storage attachment rates also grew in other states, with Arizona and Texas recording significant increases. Hawaii and California had the highest residential storage attachment rates in 2025.
Storage attachment rates for non-residential solar systems were considerably lower but increased to 11% of new installations in 2025.
The U.S. Distributed Solar and Storage 2026 Data Update includes approximately 5.3 million distributed solar systems through 2025, representing 93% of the U.S. market. It includes approximately 450,000 systems installed during 2025, also covering 93% of the total market for the year.
System Sizes and Storage
The median residential solar system size increased by 0.5 kW year over year to 7.7 kW in 2025, with most projects ranging from about 5 kW to 12 kW. California, which accounted for roughly half of the residential sample, had a relatively smaller median system size.
Non-residential systems had a median capacity of 41 kW, up from 37 kW in 2024. However, the segment had a wide range of system sizes, with the average reaching 238 kW.
The median battery storage capacity for residential solar-plus-storage systems remained unchanged at 13.5 kWh from 2024. However, median discharge capacity rose sharply from 6 kW to 11.4 kW, mainly because Tesla introduced the Powerwall 3, which has a higher discharge capacity than previous models.
<a href="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Berkley-Update-1.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-106309 size-full" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Berkley-Update-1.png" alt="Berkley Update 1" width="436" height="465" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Berkley-Update-1.png 436w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Berkley-Update-1-281x300.png 281w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 436px) 100vw, 436px" /></a>
For small non-residential projects, median storage capacity increased from 18.5 kWh in 2024 to 20 kWh in 2025, while median discharge capacity increased from 10 kW to 14 kW. Large non-residential systems saw median storage capacity decline from 886 kWh to 544 kWh, while median discharge capacity remained largely unchanged at around 250 kW.
Solar and Storage Costs
The median installed price of host-owned residential solar systems declined to $3.60/W in 2025 from $4.10/W in 2024, in inflation-adjusted terms.
Cash-purchased residential systems fell more sharply, with the median price dropping to $3/W from $3.60/W. Loan-financed systems remained considerably more expensive, although their median price decreased to $4.50/W from $4.80/W. <a href="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Berkeley-Update-3-1.png"><img loading="lazy" decoding="async" class="aligncenter wp-image-106313 size-full" src="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Berkeley-Update-3-1.png" alt="Berkeley Update 3" width="433" height="386" srcset="https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Berkeley-Update-3-1.png 433w, https://mercomindia.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Berkeley-Update-3-1-300x267.png 300w" sizes="auto, (max-width: 433px) 100vw, 433px" /></a>
Median prices for small non-residential projects were largely unchanged at $3.10/W in 2025 compared with $3.20/W in 2024, while prices for large non-residential systems remained at $2.40/W.
Adding storage, however, substantially increased project costs.
For residential systems purchased with cash, the median installed price for solar-plus-storage systems was $5.10/W, compared with $3/W for standalone solar.
The difference was smaller for loan-financed residential projects. Solar-plus-storage systems had a median installed price of $5.3/W, compared with $4.5/W for standalone solar.
Among all host-owned residential projects, solar-plus-storage systems had a median installed price of $4.90/W, compared with $3.60/W for standalone solar.
For small non-residential projects, the median installed price was $5.10/W for solar-plus-storage, compared with $3.10/W for standalone solar. For large non-residential projects, the corresponding prices were $3.70/W and $2.40/W, respectively.
Technology Trends
The growing adoption of storage is also affecting the choice of solar power electronics.
The use of module-level power electronics (MLPEs), including microinverters and DC optimizers, declined significantly in residential projects in 2025, reversing the longer-term trend.
Berkeley Lab attributed the decline to rising storage attachment rates and increased use of Tesla Powerwall 3 systems, which integrate inverters and do not readily accommodate MLPEs in their typical DC-coupled configuration.
Over the longer term, median module efficiency has increased by an average of 0.4 percentage points annually.
Solar Adopters and Financing
Households installing solar in 2025 covered a broad range of income levels. The largest group, 38% of residential adopters, lived in census block groups with median household incomes between $50,000 and $100,000. Another 34% were in the $100,000-$150,000 range.
Around 14% were in the $150,000-$200,000 category, while 6% were in areas with median incomes below $50,000.
Third-party ownership (TPO) also continued to grow. The residential TPO share increased to approximately 40% in 2025 from 39% in 2024, after rising sharply from 21% in 2023.
For small non-residential systems, TPO increased to 16% from 13%, while the share for large non-residential projects remained roughly stable at 26%.
Lower-income solar adopters were more likely to use third-party ownership, while loans and cash purchases were more prevalent among higher-income customers.
Permitting
For residential standalone solar, the median period between a permit application and its issuance declined to six days from seven days in 2024. Solar-plus-storage residential projects had a median permitting period of three days, compared with six days in 2024.
Small non-residential projects had a median permitting period of 13 days, down from 21 days, while large non-residential projects took 51 days, compared with 52 days in 2024.
At the national level, paired solar-plus-storage projects had slightly shorter permitting timelines than standalone solar, although Berkeley Lab said this partly reflected differences in projects&#8217; geographic distribution.
Over the longer term, permitting timelines have become more variable. For standalone residential solar, the 80th-percentile application-to-issuance period increased from nine days in 2000 to 25 days in 2025.
Long-Term Price Trends
Installed solar prices have fallen substantially over the past two decades. Inflation-adjusted prices fell from $9/W to $11/W, or about 70% to 80%, across customer segments.
The steepest declines occurred through 2014 and were primarily driven by falling module costs. Since then, prices have declined more gradually, averaging roughly $0.10/W to $0.20/W annually, driven primarily by changes in soft costs and other balance-of-system costs.
Soft costs include customer acquisition, installation labor, permitting and interconnection, certain financing fees, taxes, and profit. Together with other balance-of-system expenses, they accounted for roughly 80% of the median installed price of residential and non-residential solar systems in 2025.
Pricing also varied considerably among installers. Median installed prices among the 100 largest residential installers in the dataset ranged from approximately $2.4/W to $6.3/W in 2025. Roughly 60% had median prices below $4/W, almost a quarter were below $3/W, and about 10% exceeded $5/W.
More than a month after the U.S. introduced price floors and new tariffs on polysilicon products with its Section 232 proclamation, the median price for imported solar modules <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-solar-module-prices-jump-over-40-after-section-232-measures" target="_blank" rel="noopener">jumped</a> by more than 40%, according to solar data company Anza.
The U.S. <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-solar-installations-jump-45-yoy-to-11-4-gw-in-q2-2026" target="_blank" rel="noopener">added</a> 11.4 GW of solar capacity in the second quarter of 2026, a 45% year-over-year increase and a 43% quarter-over-quarter increase, according to a report by Wood Mackenzie and the Solar Energy Industries Association.

US Residential Solar-Storage Adoption Jumps to 37% in 2025

<table id="amazon-polly-audio-table">
						<tr>
						<td id="amazon-polly-audio-tab">
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-label">Listen to this article</div>
							<div id="amazon-ai-player-container">
			<audio class="amazon-ai-player" id="amazon-ai-player" preload="none" controls controlsList="nodownload" >
				<source type="audio/mpeg" src="https://cms.mercomindia.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/amazon_polly_53471.mp3?version=1683278842">
			</audio>
		</div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-subscribe-tab"></div>
							<div id="amazon-polly-by-tab"></div>
						</td>
						</tr>
					</table>Tata Power’s profit after tax (PAT) rose 48% year-on-year (YoY) to ₹9.39 billion (~$115 million) for the fourth quarter (Q4) of the financial year (FY) 2022-23, mainly driven by higher sales across distribution companies (DISCOMs) and higher renewable capacity addition.
The company posted a growth of 6% YoY in revenue, which came in at ₹128 billion (~$1.5 billion) during the quarter.
The company’s Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) increased by 38% <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/tata-powers-revenue-billion-fy22" target="_blank" rel="noopener">YoY</a> to ₹31 billion (~$380 million).
The independent power producer attributed higher renewable capacity addition and execution of engineering, procurement, and construction projects to the growth in EBITDA from January to March.
Tata Power’s revenue from the rooftop solar business doubled to ₹11 billion (~$135 million) during the January-March quarter.
The company won 398 MW of orders for installing rooftop solar during the quarter. Commercial and industrial customers accounted for 96% of the installations.
In March, Tata Power Solar Systems (TPSSL), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Tata Power, was <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/tata-solar-300-mw-solar-nlc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">awarded</a> an EPC contract for a 300 MW solar project by NLC India.
Also, during Q4, Tata Power Renewable Energy (TPREL) <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/tata-510-mw-hybrid-power-to-tata-power-ddl" target="_blank" rel="noopener">signed</a> a power purchase agreement with Tata Power Delhi Distribution to supply 510 MW of wind-solar hybrid power.
TPREL emerged as the winner for developing the project through a competitive bidding process.
Recently, Asian Development Bank <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/tata-power-adb-for-grid-enhancements" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> an investment in non-convertible debentures worth ₹1.5 billion (~$18.2 million) issued by Tata Power Delhi. The bank will partially fund a 10 MWh pilot project of battery energy storage systems with a $2 million grant.
In March, TPREL <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/tata-power-renewable-sale-shares-greenforest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">approved</a> the allotment of 200 million compulsorily convertible preference shares to GreenForest New Energies. The shares have a face value of ₹100 (~$1.2), amounting to ₹20 billion (~$242.4 million).
Tata Power Solar Systems deployed more than 98,000 solar pumps across the country, up from 27,500 pumps installed in the same quarter a year ago.
Full Year
The company’s total revenue for FY 2023 stood at ₹560.3 billion (~$7 billion), up by 32% YoY.
The company said that higher sales across DISCOMs and robust renewable capacity addition fuelled the revenue for the year.
The company’s revenue from renewables business increased by 9% YoY to ₹82 billion (~$1 billion) for FY 2023. The renewables PAT increased to ₹7.3 billion (~$89 million) from ₹6.85 billion (~$84 million) a year ago.
The company posted a YoY increase of 77% in PAT at ₹38 billion (~$467 million) for FY23 on the back of improved performance across its businesses.
Tata Power’s CEO and Managing Director Praveer Sinha said, “Our renewable business has expanded significantly across EPC, utility-scale, and rooftop verticals and is well poised to lead India’s green energy transition. The completion of a $20 billion (~$242.4 million) capital infusion into our renewables business, one of the biggest value unlocks in renewable business globally, will enable us to fuel the next leg of growth.”
Tata Power <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/tata-powers-rooftop-solar-revenue-grows-41-q3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reported</a> a 91% YoY jump in net profit to ₹10.52 billion (~$127.6 million) for the third quarter of FY 2023.

Tata Power’s Revenue from Rooftop Solar Business Doubles in Q4

The Steel Industries of Kerala Limited (<a href="https://steelindustrials.net/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SILK</a>), a Kerala government-owned company, has floated a tender for 1 MW of on-grid building-integrated photovoltaic (BIPV) system on the roof of the Chandrashekharan Nair Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala.
Bidders must make an earnest money deposit of ₹100,000 (~$1,361). The deadline for the submission of bids is March 6, 2021.
The scope of work includes the supply and installation of the on-grid solar power system at the stadium, supply and execution of related solar panel work as required. Contractors must supply and install the modules with optimizers and inverters as per the project&#8217;s total capacity. They must provide a five-year warranty on the system and components.
SILK will also execute a separate annual maintenance contract worth ₹1.2 million (~$16,337) with the selected contractor after the five-year warranty expires. The work must be completed within 120 days from the date of award of the contract.
The cost of cleaning charges using robot cleaning technology for the first five years will be ₹375,000 (~$5,105), which will be included in the annual maintenance contract charges.
Contractors must employ engineering personnel and supporting staff as required to supervise the work. For work worth between ₹15 million (~$204,214) and ₹25 million (~$340,356), the contractor must hire a work manager with three years of experience and two site engineers with at least one year of experience and an electrical or electronics engineering background.
For work worth ₹25 million (~$340,356) to ₹50 million (~$680,712), the contractor must hire one works manager with an electrical or electronics engineering background with at least five years of experience. They must also hire three site engineers with the same background with at least two years of experience.
Earlier, the Australian PV Institute <a href="https://mercomindia.com/building-integrated-solar-aesthetic-marketing/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">published</a> a report discussing the benefits of solar photovoltaic systems integrated into buildings, proposing business models outlining their value to different consumer segments.
Recently, in its state budget for 2021-2022, Kerala <a href="https://mercomindia.com/kerala-budget-proposes-loan-rooftop/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">announced</a> that the Kerala Infrastructure Investment Fund Board would provide ₹2.5 billion (~$34.2 million) for installing small-scale rooftop solar projects under the renewable energy service company model.

Bids Invited for Building-Integrated Rooftop Solar Systems in Kerala

As renewable installations in the country <a href="https://mercomindia.com/india-renewable-power-installations/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">rise</a>, it is crucial to ensure adequate energy storage solutions are in place to support renewables integration into the power mix. While the Indian government has taken several steps to promote renewable power generation, there is a lack of focus on promoting energy storage systems.
Mercom reached out to renewable executives to find out what the future holds for the energy storage companies. Most were optimistic expect storage solutions to play a crucial role in integrating renewable energy into India’s power mix.
New Value Streams 
Firms in the energy storage space say that with the right policy environment and adequate government support, new value streams in grid-balancing, ramping, peak-shifting, and frequency regulation capabilities must be developed to create a stronger business case for batteries. This, in turn, will contribute significantly to renewable energy penetration in the Indian market.
Vineet Mittal, Chairman, <a href="https://avaadaenergy.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Avaada Group</a>, said, “Energy storage is expected to play a critical role, as managing grid variability takes center stage with increased penetration of renewable assets. As prices decline, storage is expected to play a broader role in the energy markets, moving from niche uses such as grid balancing to broader ones like replacing conventional power generators for reliability, providing power-quality services, and supporting renewables integration.”
Vish Ganti, Head, <a href="https://www.auto-grid.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">AutoGrid India</a>, a smart energy solutions provider, said, “Currently, the only business and market case we have for batteries is increasing self-consumption of solar or wind generation. Although batteries can be used for ancillary services like frequency regulation, peak shaving, and boosting power quality, there are no mechanisms in the country to earn revenue using these additional value streams today. We have the capability, but we are underutilizing it. Additionally, the return on investments will take much longer since these additional value streams cannot currently be utilized to create a strong business case.”
Nishit Mehta, Head &#8211; Strategy &amp; Governance, <a href="https://www.sterlitepower.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sterlite Power</a>, said, “The government has taken cognizance of the need for energy storage assets for various high-value applications such as frequency regulation, grid stability, and renewables-integration. We expect to see this manifest in energy storage as grid-asset projects are announced and awarded in 2021. At Sterlite Power, we are closely working with different stakeholders to create the right construct for deploying energy storage as a grid asset.”
Sunil Badesra, Business Head, <a href="https://en.sungrowpower.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Sungrow (India)</a>, opined, “The last decade saw a boom in renewable energy in almost all parts of the globe. The next decade will be the decade of battery energy storage for efficient integration of volatile renewable power to the grid and also faster adoption of electric mobility. The government must focus on policy certainties related to duties, taxes, and other fiscal measures, float more tenders on solar and battery storage, and incentivize local manufacturers to have an ecosystem to create globally competitive products.”
Rucas Wang, Regional Director, <a href="https://www.ginverter.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">Growatt</a>, said, “We believe energy storage is the future for solar, and the sector will continue to grow with economic recovery on the horizon and government policies to promote clean energy. However, there are some issues with the BIS standards certification. The fee is high, and the long certification period will slow the introduction of new products into the Indian solar market. The time for BIS certification should be in accordance with the product life cycle.”
The market for energy storage in India is well behind the US, Europe, and China. Even though there is a great need for energy storage, the lack of a policy framework has prevented the battery energy storage market from taking off.
&nbsp;

Outlook for Energy Storage in 2021

The Kargil Renewable Energy Development Agency (<a href="http://kredakargil.org/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">KREDA</a>) has issued a tender for 51 solar pumps with a cumulative capacity of 1.153 MW in Kargil.
The project is expected to cost around ₹20 million (~$271,531). Interested bidders are expected to make an earnest money deposit (EMD) of ₹400,000 (~$5,431).  Micro, small, and medium enterprises are only required to pay ₹5,000 (~$68) towards the EMD. The deadline for submitting bids is October 12, 2020.
The scope of work includes supplying, installing, and commissioning the solar pumps of various ratings at the required locations. This also includes providing controllers along with the solar pumps. The pumps must conform to the norms of the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). The work is expected to be completed within a year. The pump capacities would vary, ranging between 5 HP (Horsepower) to 40 HP.
The Administration of the Union Territory of Ladakh and the Ladakh Autonomous Hill Development Council, Kargil, will provide funds for the projects based on availability. To be eligible to place bids, applicants must have undertaken work orders for the supply, installation, and commissioning of at least one solar pumping system above 30 HP during the last three years.
Prospective bidders are expected to have had a minimum annual turnover of at least ₹10 million (~$135,765) in the last three financial years. They must have undertaken at least one single work order of at least ₹20 million (~$271,531) involving solar photovoltaics under any Indian Government department. KREDA said that preference would be given based on the amount of experience the bidder has with similar work.
Kargil is trying to utilize the sun optimally to become more sustainable. Recently, the Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited had once again <a href="https://mercomindia.com/seci-7-5-gw-leh-kargil/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">extended</a> the bid submission deadline for its tender for 7.5 GW of grid-connected solar power projects slated to be developed in the districts of Leh and Kargil. The tender was originally <a href="https://mercomindia.com/seci-rfs-7-5-gw-solar-leh-kargil/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">issued</a> in January 2019.
In 2019, Mercom <a href="https://mercomindia.com/leh-kargil-connected-national-grid/" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">reported</a> that Leh and Kargil, two of India’s most difficult and inhospitable terrains, were connected to the national electricity grid. This feat, achieved after 72 years of independence, was made possible by the government’s PowerGrid Corporation of India Limited (PGCIL), a state-run transmission utility.

systems

Get the most relevant India solar and clean energy news.

RECENT POSTS