Solar parks have helped renewable energy companies reduce tariffs but some developers are complaining that at times the parks charge high fee and do not provide adequate infrastructure.
Rahul Gupta, Chief Executive, Rays Experts said the fee structure varies widely. Gyanesh Chaudhary, CEO and MD at Vikram Solar, mentioned that unlike the Rewa auction, there are a lot of unknown factors in other auctions for solar parks. He said developers should make sure that park authorities divulge all costs.
Mercom’s data states, the solar park fee in India varies from Rs 37.3 lakh per MW in Karnataka to Rs 1.05 crore per MW in Gujarat. Land application fees is a non-refundable one-time charge, upfront development charges, annual leases of land, and annual operation and maintenance charges are the most common park fees or chargers.
However, developers are faced with differing stamp duties in each state and service taxes on all components. Rewa Solar Park auction, which resulted in one of the lowest bids had no upfront park fees, land lease and internal evacuation infrastructure was built. Overall, the charges are comprehensive and straight forward according to a developer. These factors helped reach record low bids for the 750-MW auction.
By Baishakhi Dutta
