Tariff ceilings, safeguard duties, a falling rupee and mandated manufacturing capacity turned 2018 into a year of annulled tenders, and no shows by bidders.

2018 has been a volatile year for the Indian solar industry, with several hits and misses. They include the government yo-yoing over safeguard duties, annulled tenders, confusion over Goods & Services Tax (GST), record installation figures, yet predictions that the country will not meet its ambitious target of achieving 100 GW solar capacity by 2022.

For India to achieve its 2030 dreams of fully electrifying its passenger vehicle market, and growing a leading manufacturing industry, its electric vehicle program must be accelerated. Meanwhile, if Intersolar India 2018 had to nominate the most-repeated word at the event, “storage” would win hands down.

With a fleet of nearly 70 drones and a software investment of US$1 million, Ahmedabad-based Gensol Group is rolling out a high-tech digital solution for monitoring solar plants, which aims to swiftly identify problems and reduce downtime.

Styrofoam and reinforced concrete as a substrate, floating breakwaters and wave attenuators, robust anchoring, robotic cleaning and on-site manufacturing are just some of the buzzwords surrounding floating solar’s future. With 1 GW of installed floating capacity worldwide (as on November 30, 2018) and an optimistic prediction of 5 GW by 2022, this branch of solar energy is gaining immense momentum.

With yellow marigolds in large terracotta pots, colorful metal swans pinned to the walls, speakers in natty pin stripes and swarms of eager visitors, the 10th Intersolar India began a tad late, but on a high note at the Bangalore International Exhibition Centre (BIEC) in Bengaluru, often dubbed the Silicon Valley of India. Karnataka’s successes were a key talking point, while the importance of EVs and storage was underlined.

The Uttar Pradesh Government is looking for private investment worth Rs 55 billion (UD$809 million) for the proposed Bundelkhand Green Energy Corridor, which is expected to generate 4 GW of solar power.

The Indian state is looking to install 1 GW of new solar PV power under a new tender issued. A ceiling tariff of Rs 2.80 (US$0.039) has been set.

India’s much-hyped first wind-solar hybrid auction found just two bidders, with 360 MW of the 1,200 MW finding no takers at all. This is the second time the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) has held this auction, after the first round in May failed to attract bidders.