FAQ?

Rooftop PV

1 kW rooftop system generally requires 100 Square Feet ( 10 sq. metres ) of flat, shadow-free area (preferably south-facing). Actual sizing, however, depends also on local factors of solar radiation and weather conditions and shape of the roof.
There are three major components of grid-tie solar installation: solar panels, grid-tie solar inverter and bidirectional meter. When sunlight falls on solar panels, they generate DC electricity. This electricity goes to grid-tie solar inverter where it gets converted into usable AC electricity. It then enters the main power supply of the building and powers all connected electrical load. Surplus solar energy generated is fed back to the grid via bi-directional meter which helps keep track of electricity taken from the grid and fed back to it.
As the name suggests, grid-tie solar inverters are connected to the grid and cannot work without the grid. When the grid fails, system also fails to generate any electricity. This is a security measure and the inverter shuts off to protect any line man working when the power is cut.
Areas that get good and reliable power supply, but expensive electricity bill should go for grid-tie solar. Grid-tie solar is particularly good for establishments that function during the day such as schools and offices because they operate during the sunshine hours. They can generate and use all the electricity they need with grid-tie solar. States where net-metering policy has been implemented should also think about grid-tie solar because they can get paid for selling solar electricity back to the grid.
A typical off-grid solar installation consists of solar panels, solar inverter, charge controller and battery. When sunlight falls on solar panels, they generate DC electricity. This goes to the inverter to get converted into usable AC electricity to power the connected load. Surplus DC gets stored in battery for future use. The solar inverter has an inbuilt solar charge controller which is connected to the battery. It makes sure that right amount of voltage and current are delivered to charge the battery. Solar panels can sometime generate very high amount of voltage which can be harmful for the battery. They also prevent backflow of current from battery to solar panel during nighttime.
The major difference that between the two is that in grid-tie solar installation there is no battery so you can’t store surplus energy for future use. However, with the grid-tie solar installation you get to sell surplus solar energy back to the grid and get paid for it. We have written a simple blog to explain the key difference.
There are three ways of calculating solar savings.
1) Your solar inverter should tell you the units of electricity the system generated in a day. For example, if your 4kw solar system generated 16 units of electricity in a day and each unit of electricity costs Rs. 7 then you made Rs. 112 worth of electricity in day. If you multiply that with 365 you get Rs. 40,880 which is your annual savings from solar.
2) You can also compare the cost of solar to cost of running a diesel generator. A 10kva diesel generator consumes 1.5 litres of diesel every hour. If you live in an area that gets regular long powercuts of 10 hours then you will end of spending nearly 22,500 per month on diesel as diesel costs between Rs.50-60. Whereas, a 10kw off-grid solar installation would cost much less. You will be able to recover the cost of solar installation just 5 years if you compare it with using diesel generators.
3) In the case of grid-tie solar, you can also calculate the units of solar electricity you sell to the Government through bi-directional meter. For example, in Bangalore, the electricity board pays more than Rs. 9 for every unit of electricity.
For more Details contact Ricans team for free cost analysis !!
As India falls in Northern hemisphere, solar panels should be facing south to get maximum sunlight. The angle of solar panel should depend on the latitude of the region. India is a big country so it hard to define uniform latitude for all regions in India. However, as an approximate, solar panels should be installed at an angle of 30 degrees in India. Please take note that the angle may differ based on your exact location. The solar installer should be able to tell you the best angle for solar panels so that they get maximum sun light and generate maximum DC electricity.
Many Indian states are now paying consumers to sell the solar electricity. In a grid-tie installation the consumers can send surplus solar electricity generated back to the grid. A bi-directional meter records the units of electricity taken from the grid as well as units fed into the grid. The monthly electricity bill credits the consumers for selling electricity. This is called solar net-metering. This policy has been implement in many Indian states.
You would be surprised to know that solar panels can actually work very well even when temperature is between 15 to 25 degrees Celsius. This is because solar panels need maximum sunlight and not maximum heat in order to generate solar electricity. India is blessed with an average of 300 sunny days in a year so solar panels give good performance in Indian weather conditions.
Subsidies are available from multiple channels for setting up Rooftop PV projects.
a) Subsidy/Support from Central Government through MNRE: For systems upto 100 kWp in size, upto 30% subsidy can be availed with the help of MNRE-empanelled channel partners. For systems of sizes 100 kWp-500 kWp, subsidy can be availed through Solar Energy Corporation of India.
b) Subsidy/Support from State Government through State Nodal Agencies (SNAs): Subsidy support is also available in various states. The percentage of subsidy varies according to the state policies. Interested consumers may contact their respective SNAs for more details.
Currently, Ricans implements the rooftop scheme under two models: A) CAPEX Model: Here, the entire system is owned by the rooftop owners. Responsibility of O&M for the system lifetime (25 years) is also with the rooftop owner. Ricans is responsible for installing the system and initial 2 years O&M. B) RESCO Model: Here, the entire system is owned by the Ricans. Responsibility of O&M for the system lifetime (25 years) is also with the developer. Rooftop owners consume the electricity generated, for which they have to pay a pre-decided tariff on a monthly basis. Excess generation is exported to the grid, subject to availability of requisite state regulations.

Ground Mounted PV

Ricans’s expert team is responsible for providing End to End, EPC (Engineering, Procurement and Construction) services including DPR report , setting up of power plant and Complete O&M services .
Several tax/duty exemptions are available for solar plants depending on the respective state solar policies where the plants are located. You may contact Us for more details.
In the year 2016-17, Central Electricity Regulatory Commission has given the benchmark capital cost for solar PV projects as 600 lakhs/ MW. Actual cost would depend on site location, components selection, contractor hired etc.
Typically , a 1 MW solar PV project require 3.5-5 acres of land depending on various factors such as type of land , technology used , design of the solar system etc.
There is no subsidy available for utility-scale SPV plants. Various states offer a bouquet of incentives (such as exemption from Open Access charges, feed-in tariffs, tax benefits, accelerated depreciation etc.) to solar power projects that are set up under their state schemes.
At the national level, solar PV plants are being set up through Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (Phase II). Under this programme, projects are being set up with Viability Gap Funding support from the Central Government. Developers willing to avail the Central Government support may participate in the open tendering process.
A certain set of permissions need to be obtained and documents need to be submitted in order to setup a Solar PV plant. These may vary from state-to-state.The following are the statutory clearances and environmental clearances to be furnished:
  • Industrial Clearance
  • Land conversion (Agricultural to Non-Agricultural)
  • Environmental Clearance Certificate
  • Contract labour license
  • Fire Safety certificate
  • Latest tax receipt from the Municipal/Gram Panchayat for the factory land
  • Auditor compliance certificate regarding fossil fuel utilization
  • Approval from Chief Electrical Inspector
  • Clearance from Forest department

Consultancy

Ricans offers the following range of consultancy services, both for ground-mounted solar plants as well as for large-scale rooftop PV systems.
  • Feasibility studies
  • DPR preparation
  • Project management consultancy
  • Owner’s engineering
  • Turnkey services (from concept to commissioning)

General FAQs

PV, short for Photovoltaic, derives its name from the process of converting light (‘photo’) directly into electricity (‘voltaic’). Simply put, a Solar PV system is a power station that generates electricity from sunlight.
The main components of a Solar PV system are:
  • Solar Panels/Modules: Solar panels consist of a group of small cells made from semiconductor material. When the sun’s light falls on the modules, it excites
  • Storage Battery: The best use of solar energy is to consume it while it is being generated. If the requirement is to store this power and consume it in the
  • Solar Inverter: The DC electricity goes into an inverter that converts it into alternating current (AC). We use AC for running our household or office or factory equipment.
If you planning to install a solar plant, below are some things to consider:
  • What are your energy demands? How do you consume the power?
  • What is the availability of the shadow-free area on your rooftop or building premises?
  • What is the buying option you find more commercially viable (CAPEX or RESCO)?
  • What would be the savings if you go solar?
Most panel manufacturers give warranty of 25 years, however, there have been plants in operations for 40 years as well
There are various factors involved in choosing your PV system. You might want to research on them before choosing the apt model:
  • Energy Consumption Pattern
  • Power Cuts or outages
  • Various Govt. Policies like Net Metering, Grid Power Access or subsidies on Solar power.

Finance

There are two main buying options available in the market:-
  • OPEX Model – In this, a third-party investor owns the solar plant. The consumer and the producer enter into a PPA (power purchase agreement) for a decided duration of time which is typically 15-25 years. During the tenure of PPA, the consumer pays the producer for the power generated at a decided tariff. After the PPA terminates, the solar plant is transferred to the consumer.
  • CAPEX model – In this, end consumer owns the solar plant by purchasing it upfront and can avail various financing options like bank loans to finance the solar plant.
Solar power is much cheaper than the power from grid and diesel generators. Today average cost of power from solar is Rs. 4.5-5 per kWh (For commercial and Industrial segments) while the average cost of power from the grid is Rs. 7 per kWh and Rs 16 per kWh from a diesel generator. (A litre of diesel generates around 3-4 kWh).

Installation & Maintainence

It can range between 2-10 weeks depending on the complexity of the project.
If your roof is not having any shade from adjacent buildings, trees etc and its structure is not delicate then your roof is suitable for installation of solar plant. Solar plant can also be installed on car parks, open shade ground within your premises by erecting special mounting structures.
A proper evaluation will be done by Ricans to see if the solar plant can be put up on your premises.
The annual maintenance cost is not very significant as the system only requires cleaning of modules (every 2-3 weeks) and basic preventive and corrective electrical maintenance (every 3 months) Water is generally used to clean the panels – Typically 5 litres of water is required for a KWh. Ricans will take care of the operation and maintenance of the plant at its own cost for the tenure of PPA tenure.

Generation

It is advisable to install an energy monitoring system along with your solar plant that will allow you to compare the actual with the estimated performance on daily, monthly and annual basis.
Following factors should be kept in mind:-
  • Location and layout of the solar plant.
  • Roof Orientation and shade-free area.
  • Quality of equipment
  • Design of the solar plant.
  • Maintenance of the plant.
On an average, every 1 KW setup produces 1300 to 1500 units in a year. This may, however, vary based upon the location of the plant, seasonal factors, surroundings and shadow-free area available. You can consider 1400 units for sake of calculations.
Solar Power is an intermittent source of energy depending on irradiation, the temperature of the region and a lot of other environmental factors. Hence, a 100 kW plant won’t produce 100 kW power.
The electricity generation of the plant suffers during rainy and cloudy days especially during the monsoon season, but the generation never drops to zero. The loss of generation during monsoon and other rains is already adjusted in the 1.3 to 1.5 Lakhs unit/100kWp/annum generation number.
No, Solar energy is integrated into the LT panel of consumer premises, wherein DG, Grid or other generator sources would be feeding power as of now. When solar energy is injected, the equipment is unaware of the source from which power is feeding in. Hence it is not possible to segregate the loads on basis of the power source.
Technically yes, a solar plant can meet your entire power requirement if it is backed by battery energy storage system (BESS). But practically, for commercial and industrial users where the power requirement is higher, it would be recommended to use solar in sync with the grid. When in sync, priority is automatically given to the solar power to be consumed first.
The Solar plant will generate electricity only during the Sunny hours, typically between 6 A.M. to 6 P.M and will not generate any electricity during the night.
Since Solar PV works based on the amount of sunlight it receives, it starts generating the output at around 6 am in the morning and stops at about 7 pm in the evening depending on the plant location. The generation increases gradually and peaks at noon and then gradually decreases as the Sun goes down. Since it’s a grid interactive plant the functioning of your electrical equipment is not affected.