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Punjab Solar Policy

Punjab Solar Policy

The Governor of Punjab has already notified New and Renewable Sources of Energy Policy (NRSE) 2012 which, interalia, provides for encouraging solar power generation to harness the vast solar potential in the State and to promote Stand Alone, Rooftop and IPP projects to achieve installed capacity of 1000 MW by the year 2022. Solar energy offers clean, climate-friendly abundant and inexhaustible energy resources to mankind. New and Renewable Sources of Energy Policy (NRSE) has also designated Punjab Energy Development Agency (PEDA) to undertake a solar rooftop program in the State for the domestic, industrial and commercial sectors through Grid interconnectivity by deploying net metering/sale of power to Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL)/LICENSEE. To achieve the objectives of the New and Renewable Sources of Energy Policy (NRSE) 2012 and after carefully examining the policies and schemes in this regard, the Governor of Punjab is pleased to approve the ‘Policy on net metering for Grid Interactive Roof-Top Solar Photo Voltaic Power Plants’ which shall be effective from the date of its notification in the official Gazette.

1. Definitions and Interpretations: (1) In This Policy, unless the context otherwise requires:- 

(a) “Act” means The Electricity Act, 2003 (36 of 2003); 

(b) “Billing cycle or Billing period” means the period for which regular electricity bills as specified by the Commission, are prepared for different categories of consumers by the licensee; 

(c) “Commission” means the Punjab State Electricity Regulatory Commission constituted under the Act; 

(d) ”Consumer” means any person who is supplied with electricity for his own use or by a licensee or the Government or by any other person engaged in the business of supplying electricity to the public under the Act or any other law for the time being in force and includes any person whose premises are, for the time being, connected for the purpose of receiving electricity with the works of a distribution licensee, the Government or such other person, as the case may be; 

(e) “Contract Demand” or “Sanctioned Connected Load” means the maximum demand in Kilo Watt (KW), Kilo Volt Amperes (KVA) or Break Horse Power (BHP), agreed to be supplied by the licensee and indicated in the agreement (A & A Form) executed between the licensee and the consumer; 

(f) “Distribution Licensee” or “Licensee” means a person granted a license under section 14 of the Act authorizing him to operate and maintain a distribution system for supplying electricity to the consumers in his area of supply; 

(g) “Electricity Supply Code” means the Electricity Supply Code specified under section 50 of the Act. 

(h) ‘Eligible Consumer’ means a consumer of electricity in the area of supply of the distribution licensee, who uses a solar system installed in the consumer premises, to offset part or all of the consumer’s own electrical requirements, given that such systems can be self-owned or third party owned; 

(i) “Financial Year” or “Year” means the period beginning from first day of April in an English calendar year and ending with the thirty first day of the March of the next year; 

(j) “GOP” means the Government of Punjab in the Department of New and Renewable Energy; 

(k) “Interconnection Point” means the interface of roof top solar power generation facility system with the network of distribution licensee and shall normally be the point where meter is installed to measure the energy transfer between Licensee and the solar facility developer as a consumer; 

(l) “Invoice” means a Monthly Bill or a Supplementary Bill or a Monthly Invoice or a Supplementary Invoice raised by the distribution licensee to the consumer. 

(m) “kWp” means kilo Watt peak; 

(n) “Nodal Agency” means Punjab Energy Development Agency; 

(o) “Net Metering” means an arrangement under which rooftop solar system installed at eligible consumer premises delivers surplus electricity, if any, to the Distribution Licensee for off-setting the electricity supplied by distribution licensee during the applicable or subsequent Billing Period but within the Settlement Period. 

(p) “Obligated Entity” means the entity mandated under clause (e) of subsection (1) of section 86 of the Act to fulfill the renewable purchase obligation and identified under State RPO Regulations; 

(q) “Premises” means rooftops or/and vacant spaces/areas on the land, building or infrastructure or part or combination thereof in respect of which a separate meter or metering arrangements have been made by the licensee for supply of electricity; 

(r) “Roof top Solar Power Plant Agreement (RSPA)” means an agreement entered into by and between the Distribution licensee and the consumer in accordance with this Policy;  

(s) ‘Rooftop Solar System’ means the solar photo voltaic power system installed on rooftops/vacant spaces/areas within the consumer premises that uses sunlight for direct conversion into electricity through photo voltaic technology; 

(t) “Renewable Energy Certificate (REC)” means the certificate issued in accordance with the procedures approved by the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission; 

(u) ‘Settlement Period” means the period beginning from first day of October in a calendar year and ending with the thirtieth day of the September of the next year; 

(v) “Tariff Order” in respect of a licensee means the most recent order issued by the Commission for that licensee indicating the rates to be charged by the licensee from various categories of consumers for supply of electrical energy and services; 

(w) “Third party Owned” means in which a developer owns the Rooftop Solar system and also enters into a lease or commercial arrangement with the rooftop owner; 

(2) All other words and expressions used in this Policy although not specifically defined herein above, but defined in the Act, shall have the same meaning or assigned to them in the Act. The other words and expressions used herein but not specifically defined in This Policy or in the Act but defined under any law passed by the Parliament/State Legislature or Regulations notified by Appropriate Commission applicable to the electricity industry in the State shall have the meaning as assigned to them in such law

Punjab DISCOM Official Website:

Punjab State Power Corporation Ltd. – https://distribution.pspcl.in/returns/module.php?to=PSPCLRoofTopSolar

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