Karnataka has more solar power than it can use

Bengaluru: Barely 2% of the ambitious five-year target for roof-top solar power generation has been achieved; prompting the State government to tweak the rules to encourage more participation.

In an event organised by the industrial association ASSOCHAM on Tuesday, P. Ravikumar, Additional Chief Secretary of the Energy Department, said just 57MW of solar roof-top energy is being produced in the State - a far cry from the 2,400MW target for 2022.

“The process is too technical for citizens. We



need simpler procedures and active participation from the residents - and one way to achieve this is by making the process online,” he said.

However, when it comes to solar plants and open access grid production, production has far exceeded demand from companies and industries who directly buy solar power. “This has led to closing of a few plants to avoid redundancy. Access to these solar grids necessitates negotiating a lot of red tape, which is difficult for corporates. This will be rectified,” he said.