Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal on Monday unveiled the Delhi Solar Policy-2024, under which consumers installing solar power panels on their rooftops will be given generation-based incentives.
According to the government, around 20% of Delhi’s electricity consumption will come from solar power by 2027. The government will spend ₹570 crore for the implementation of the policy.
The Chief Minister said the scheme would help cut households’ power bills to zero if their electricity consumption is below 200 units a month after adjusting against the electricity they generate.
“Let us say if a household has consumed 400 units and generated 100 units of solar power, it will be charged only for 300 units,” he said.
But if, after offsetting the solar power generated, the total units are less than 200, then the bill amount will be zero, the CM said. Currently, households consuming electricity up to 200 units a month are exempted from paying bills, while those consuming between 201 and 400 units get a 50% subsidy.
Mr. Kejriwal said a domestic consumer could earn ₹700-900 per month after installing rooftop solar panels, which would help recover the installation costs within four years.
“Let us say a residential consumer’s average monthly consumption is 360 units and the consumer installs a 2kW rooftop solar plant at an approximate cost of ₹90,000 with taxes and subsidy included. The consumer will start getting zero electricity bills right away [saving ₹1,370 per month] as well as the generation-based incentive of about ₹700 per month,” he said.
“This way, their total annual saving will be around ₹24,000. Since the consumer spent ₹90,000 initially, the cost will be recovered in four years,” Mr. Kejriwal added.
‘Will offset inflation’
The CM said the aim of the policy is to reduce Delhi’s air pollution caused by diesel generators and help fight inflation by bringing electricity charges to zero for households. He said the move would also help industrial consumers cut their electricity bills to half.
He said the shortcomings of the 2016 policy have also been removed as the requirement of minimum power generation to be eligible for benefits has been done away with.