Distributed Solar Power Association Seeks Relief for C&I Projects from ALMM Amendment

Industry body Distributed Solar Power Association (DiSPA) has sought relief from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) for keeping the Commercial & Industrial (C&I) solar projects outside the ambit of the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) Amendment.
 
In response to a petition filed by the DiSPA, Delhi High-Court has sought clarification from MNRE on the provisions they have made to protect the ongoing projects, which could be negatively impacted, from the extension of the ALMM to the projects under open access and net metering.
 
The solar project developers said that they are hopeful that the Ministry will delay the implementation of the amendment by a minimum of 1 year, to protect the ongoing projects.
 
Commenting on the development, Pinaki Bhattacharyya, President, DiSPA, said, “Over 4 GW of open access and rooftop projects under various stages of development, can get stuck due to this ALMM notification which will have a significant financial impact on developers and consumers.”
 
Discussing the issues of developers, Pinaki Bhattacharyya added that “This will be an additional burden with BCD (kicking in from 1st April) and GST adversely impacting solar projects. The government must understand that the developers are already suffering from issues such as supply chain delays, shortage of raw material and such sudden amendments only lead to an artificial increase in prices. We are still hopeful that MNRE, which understands the seriousness of the situation, will offer us a solution that is in the larger interest of the development of the renewable energy ecosystem.”
 
DiSPA is a registered association of renewable energy developers and independent power producers (IPPs) operating in the field of renewable energy from solar, wind and hybrid (wind & solar) for the C&I segment.
 
In January this year, MNRE reportedly amended the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) of Solar Photovoltaic Modules Order, 2019, to include open access and net metering projects. This amendment has not been received well by solar developers and industry associations, who approached MNRE asking for clarity on the application of the order to private projects developed for C&I consumers.
 
Developers wanted to know whether adequate time would be provided for the implementation of such amendment, so that ongoing projects will not get impacted.
 
In the absence of a response from the Ministry, developers approached Delhi High Court, for clarification.
 
Developers said that, the counsel appearing on behalf of the Ministry offered no clarification on the impact on ongoing projects.
 
Now solar power project developers want that the Ministry to keep C&I projects under open access and net metering outside the ambit of this order, because such projects are neither government-funded nor subsidized.
 
In addition, the present supply of solar modules is not enough to cater to government-funded projects. Any shortage in supply will affect the development of solar energy projects, they added.
 
DiSPA also said that, it is also a matter of concern that not all module manufacturers pass reliability parameters and they do not make modules that can be used in commercial projects.
 
Meanwhile, the next hearing of the High Court on the matter has been scheduled for March 29, 2022.