PV Insider has announced that government officials from the MNRE, Gujarat, Rajasthan and Karnataka will gather at the PV Project Development Summit 2012 in New Delhi, to discuss the strategy of the photovoltaic industry for Phase II of the Solar Mission and state policies.

The Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission has significantly contributed to the sustainable growth of India. Specifically, the photovoltaic industry has shown a constant and stable growth in the amount of PV projects; with recent reports estimating that the objectives of the JNNSM might be exceeded by approximately 67%, achieving 33.4 GW of PV installed capacity by 2022.

For the first batch of projects allocation under JNNSM, over 333 project developers had put forward bids worth 1,815 MW for 150 MW of PV projects. Given this unexpected oversubscription, the government decided to award contracts based on a competitive reverse bidding process, for which tariffs fell by around 30% from an initial offered price of Rs 17.91 per kWh to Rs 10 per kWh. Moreover, during the second round of JNNSM Phase I bidding process, prices fell further down with the lowest offered price of Rs 7.49 per Kwh.

The accomplishments of the Solar Mission to date have been many, but the industry is divided on the sustainability of solar projects with such low pricing. With project developers raising concerns over the long- term policy viability for the expansion of the solar power market in India, accurate planning from the government side becomes imperative to eradicate the lack of clarity over the solar policies in the country; now more than ever that the target for Phase II (2013–2017) has recently been revised its to 9,000 MW from its earlier target of 3,000 MW.

PV Insider is collaborating with project developers in India to get the answers they seek towards the policies that will be presiding Phase II of the JNNSM, by incorporating a troubleshooting Q&A session covering the most pressing subjects among the regulatory framework for the Indian PV industry at the PV Project Development Summit India, taking place on the 30-31st July in New Delhi.

The plenary session will give delegates the opportunity of exchange views and get practical advice regarding regulations and the JNNSM scope, reuniting the highest policy makers and government officials in India for the solar industry. The confirmed participants for this session are:

Tarun Kapoor, Joint Secretary, MNRE
Anil Kumar, CEO, NVVN
Dr. Pramod Deo, Chairperson, CERC
K. Popli, Director Technical, IREDA
D. J. Pandian, Principal Secretary Energy, Government of Gujarat
Naresh Pal Gangwar, Secretary Energy, Government of Rajastha
Prasanna Kumar, Managing Director, Karnataka Renewable Energy Development

More information about this session and the entire agenda of PV Project Development Summit India 2012, can be found in the conference brochure, which is free of charge and available to download at: [www.pv-insider.com/development-india/conference-event-brochure.php]