During a recent PV Insider podcast, Tarun Kapoor, Joint Secretary of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy of India; provided an outlook about the current situation and future developments of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission.

The Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission has significantly contributed to the sustainable growth of India, while helping to fulfil the nation's energy needs. During Batch I of Phase I of the total 30 winning projects, 28 signed PPAs, while half of them were commissioned before its deadline. Furthermore, the second batch undoubtedly captured the interest of international corporations towards the Indian solar market.

In a podcast recorded last week by PV Insider, we spoke with Tarun Kapoor, Joint Secretary from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy of India about the main drivers for the industry today, including the latest developments and future outlook of the Solar Mission. During the interview, Kapoor revealed that Phase I might exceed its initial objectives, making Phase II be very promising: "We had a target of 1,100 MW in the first phase, and out of that, more than 900 MW we have already done which means we will be achieving much more that our initial target (…). Therefore we are all set for Phase II now"

The accomplishments of the Solar Mission so far have been many, but so are the challenges to be overcome in the near future now that Phase I will come to its end in 2013. Critical decisions must be taken to achieve the 20 GW goals by 2020 and furthering the development of the PV industry in India.

Considering that the Government has recently revised its target for Phase II (2013–2017) to 9,000 MW from its earlier target of 3,000 MW, accurate planning becomes imperative to eradicate the lack of clarity over the security of payment mechanisms, the viability of the state utilities in purchasing and transmitting solar power, enforcement of RPOs and the Domestic Content Requirements and the bankability of PPAs among other challenges.

The podcast is free of charge and can be downloaded here:

http://www.pv-insider.com/development-india/content12.php

Tarun Kapoor will be a keynote speaker at the PV Project Development Summit India 2012 (30-31 July in New Delhi); where critical topics like regulatory framework, financial closure, technology selection and many more; will be addressed and overcome by 40+ senior level experts discussing the roadmap to increase PV competitiveness while seizing the best new opportunities in the Indian market.