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Rooftop solar capacity doubles in a year.

India’s rooftop solar programme seems to have finally taken off, with the country adding 513 MW of fresh capacity in the past 12 months, or more than what it had a year ago.Of the 513 MW capacity added in the past year through September, 280 MW of projects were set up in the last six months, according to the India Solar Rooftop Map released by solar consultancy Bridge to India.

India now has total rooftop solar capacity of over 1,020 MW — 377 MW by the industrial sector, 263 MW by the commercial sector, 121 MW by government buildings and the remaining 260 MW on residential buildings.India’s total solar capacity was 8,052 MW at the end of July, the latest month for which figures are available. Rooftop projects thus account for less than 13 per cent of the country's total solar capacity. Among states, the best performer in rooftop solar addition has been Tamil Nadu, with its capacity rising to 132 MW by end-September from 85.4 MW in March.

Other leading performers are Gujarat, Rajasthan, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Delhi’s solar rooftop capacity was 35 MW, up from 32 MW in end-March. Of the total national capacity of 1,020 MW, 853 MW has been added through the capex route (in which the building owner herself owns and operates the rooftop plant)