Guwahati: If you are shocked by your electricity bills, a very less discussed solution is the Rodalee scheme implemented by APDCL (Assam Power Distribution Company Limited). Started in 2019, it is yet to reach a large set of consumers. But when today everyone is complaining of hiked electricity bills, this scheme could have come as a relief.
It is launched by Ministry of New and Renewable Energy of Government of India.
Speaking to Business Northeast, the Chief General Manager of New and Renewable Energy, Bedabrata Sinha Choudhury informed that the consumer must have 10 square meter shadow free area to install it. To be eligible to install rooftop solar panels under the Rodale scheme, one must be a domestic consumer.
For this scheme, Assam Power Distribution Corporation Limited (APDCL) is the implementing agency.
The subscribers are also entitled to subsidy under the Rodalee scheme. The CGM informed that up to 3 Kilowatt usage, the subsidy was 40 percent. Between 3 Kilowatts to 10 Kilowatt, the subsidy is 20 percent.
The value of 1 Kilowatt is Rs 52, 1 to 2 Kilowatt is Rs 47, from 2 to 3 Kilowatt Rs 46 and from 3 to 10 kilowatt is Rs.45.
The domestic consumer must have a connected load. Connected Load is the energy consumed when all connected systems, circuits, components, devices or equipment are operating and drawing power at the same time. The consumer should not cross 80 percent of the connected load size.
He informed that the rooftop panel is a grid connection.
The charges of installing is Rs. 50000 if the capacity required is1 kilowatt.
Business Northeast questioned as why there is a hiked electricity bill and bad load-shedding in the state, to which he replied that electricity generation is very low in Assam. The requirement is 2400-2500 Megawatt, how Assam is generating only 500 Megawatt. There is purchase of 1500 Megawatt from Indian Energy Exchange. Still there is shortage of 500 MW that is collected through load shedding.
He confirmed that solar panels can be the most efficient source for generating electricity compared to that generated by hydro power or thermal power.
In the phase 1 which started in 2020, the target allotted to them was 2 Megawatt in which they had 50 consumers. During that time they produced 223 kilowatt. In Phase 2, the target was 1.5 Megawatt and the total number of consumers was 12. The generation was 70 kilowatt.
ALSO READ: Jal Urja Mitra to be ambassadors for Arunachal’s hydro-power devp
FIRST Business Portal addressing the potential of business capability of North East Region.
