commercial
Commercial & Industrial Solar
Commercial & Industrial Solar
Commercial solar is a different proposition from residential solar in three ways that matter more than the size of the array: there is no central subsidy, the regulatory ceilings are set by contract demand rather than by a scheme, and the economics are usually better rather than worse — because commercial tariffs are higher and commercial load is concentrated in daylight hours.
This page covers factories, hospitals, schools, hotels, cold stores, offices and institutional buildings in Madhya Pradesh, on rooftop or ground mount.
There is no central subsidy, and that is fine
PM Surya Ghar's Central Financial Assistance is available to residential connections only. The scheme guidelines state explicitly that government, commercial and industrial connections receive no CFA at all.
Any proposal that offers a commercial building ₹78,000 of central subsidy is describing a residential scheme it does not qualify for. Treat it as a signal about the proposer.
The compensating factor is that commercial economics do not need it. A commercial or industrial consumer is buying units at a materially higher rate than a domestic consumer, and — crucially — consuming most of them between nine and six, which is precisely when a solar array generates. Self-consumption at a high tariff is worth more than export at any tariff, and a C&I load profile maximises self-consumption without any behavioural change at all.
Accelerated depreciation on solar assets is available to businesses under the income-tax rules and materially improves post-tax returns for a profitable entity. The applicable rate, the half-year rule for assets commissioned late in a financial year, and your own tax position are matters for your auditor — we will not put a number in a proposal that only your CA can responsibly compute.
The regulatory ceilings that actually bind
MPERC's RG-39(II) of 2024 governs interconnection for commercial consumers on the same instrument as residential, with different numbers:
| Arrangement | Ceiling |
|---|---|
| Net metering | up to 500 kW |
| Gross metering | up to 1 MW |
| Group net metering | under 100 kW |
| Virtual net metering | under 100 kW |
| Minimum under any arrangement | 1 kW |
Two constraints decide most commercial projects before capacity does:
- Your system must not exceed your contract demand (for a demand-based tariff) or your sanctioned load. This is the binding limit far more often than roof area is, and enhancing contract demand is a separate commercial conversation with the DISCOM that has its own cost consequences.
- Cumulative rooftop capacity on the feeding transformer is capped at 80% of its rating, allocated first-come-first-served. For an HT consumer the same 80% test is applied against the feeding transformer. DISCOMs publish available capacity annually.
A consumer with pending arrears is not entitled to net, group, virtual or gross metering until they are cleared. Net metering and gross metering are mutually exclusive, and a net-metered or gross-metered prosumer cannot avail intra-state open access — which is a genuine strategic decision for a large industrial consumer, not a footnote.
Where the system is RESCO-owned, the prosumer is exempt from banking charges, wheeling charges, cross-subsidy surcharge and additional surcharge under net and gross metering.
Timelines, and what delay is worth
- Technical feasibility must be decided within 20 days generally, and 15 days for rooftop solar PV.
- For rooftop PV, failure to communicate an outcome within 15 days means the application is deemed accepted.
- The Letter of Approval issues within 30 days of acknowledgement, on receipt of full payment.
- After the installation certificate is submitted, the DISCOM has 15 days to complete agreement signing, metering and commissioning.
- Delay by the licensee without just cause carries ₹500 per day of default, payable to the consumer.
Applications may be filed at the DISCOM office or online, an acknowledgement with a registration number is generated immediately, and the DISCOM must provide application tracking. The processing fee under the regulation is ₹1,000; the PM Surya Ghar waiver does not extend to commercial applicants.
What we design for
- Load-profile matching. Inverter and array sized against a real interval load curve, not against roof area — because on a commercial connection the unit you self-consume is worth much more than the unit you export.
- Summer peak and process load. Where cooling or process load peaks with irradiance, the match is close to ideal and self-consumption approaches 100%.
- Diesel displacement. Where supply is weak, a hybrid configuration reduces generator run-hours; the value here is fuel and maintenance, and it is site-specific enough to be measured rather than assumed.
- Structural reality. Existing industrial roofs — trapezoidal sheet, AC sheet, RCC, north-light trusses — each carry different fixing methods and different load headroom. This is established by structural assessment, not by a rule of thumb.
- Ground mount where roof area or roof condition does not permit the required capacity.
Engineering standards
Interconnection conforms to the CEA Technical Standard for Connectivity of Distributed Generation Resources 2013, the CEA Measures relating to Safety and Electric Supply Regulations 2023, and the MP Electricity Grid Code 2021. Anti- islanding protection, automatic synchronisation and harmonic filtering within IEGC/IEEE limits are mandatory. Responsibility for safe operation up to the metering point rests with the prosumer; beyond it, with the DISCOM.
Mounting structures are hot-dip galvanised iron, AA6063-T6 aluminium or hot-dip galvanised mild steel, with steel to IS 2062:2011 and galvanising to IS 4759, all fasteners in SS 304 or hot-dip galvanised, designed for the wind zone of the location at a minimum factor of safety of 1.5 and a design life of 25 years.
ALMM applies to net-metering projects, commercially as well as residentially. List-I (modules) has been in force since March 2021. List-II (cells) compliance for net-metering and open-access projects has moved repeatedly through 2026 and remains subject to further MNRE clarification, so module and cell sourcing is confirmed against the current lists at the time of order rather than at the time of quotation.
Our scope
Interval-level load study · shading and structural assessment · electrical single-line design and protection coordination · DISCOM application and liaison through to commissioning · procurement against specification · installation · commissioning and testing · performance monitoring · annual maintenance.