Solar farm in India

Solar farm in India

Most corporates today strive to source as much of their power as possible from renewable energy sources, particularly because of global commitments like RE100 gaining traction. While rooftop or distributed solar is a great way to get started, many of our clients don’t have sufficient space within their facilities to install a power plant to supply the bulk of their energy requirements.

Grid-connected or ‘Open Access’ solar power through offsite Solar Farms addresses this problem by providing large-scale power through the grid, up to 100% of our clients’ needs. For instance, Adobe India, one of our open access clients, sources 100% of its power requirement for its Bangalore facility from our solar farms in Karnataka.

For a business, sourcing of renewable energy achieves the dual goals of substantial savings on electricity as well as making large strides towards 100% sourcing of renewable power. Open access solar power is a popular power generation option that gives enterprises like yours an opportunity to meet all your electricity needs at tariffs lower than the prevailing grid electricity rates along with the tariff certainty for next 20-25 years.


Solar Farm by SSK Green Max

* Example:

Below graph showcases the benefit of procuring power from offsite open access solar farms in India. The Solar power is supplied considering the Time of Year (TOY) and with banking restrictions prevailing in India.

Let’s assume that this large corporate has a need for a continuous and constant power load of 100 units throughout the year 24x7.

Then power procurement through an open access solar farm alone can cater to only 60 units i.e. for every 100 units of electricity required only 60% of the power requirement can be substituted by solar energy without the risk of incurring significant banking losses and also customer can achieve around minimum 25% savings on their annual electricity bills.


Offsite Open Access Solar Farm Graph
Offsite Open Access Solar Farm Pie Graph

*Disclaimer: The information presented above is for educational purposes only. All the data provided in the article above are approximate values derived from third party sources, research articles or on ground experience and SSK Green Max would take no responsibility or have any obligation over the correctness of data.


Today we have a large network of private offsite open access renewable energy farms across India, through which we supply large corporates clean energy as per their requirements.

You can choose to procure low cost renewable energy using any of the below models.

This is how Third Party (Open Access) works:

At SSK Green Max, we can meet all your business electricity needs by supplying renewable energy from our offsite private Solar farms, Wind farms and Wind Solar Hybrid (WSH) Farms across India. Open access power tariffs are much cheaper than grid tariffs. Moreover, this model allows consumers to overcome the limitations of onsite solar installation, as it is a scalable option which is not constrained by availability of space at your facility. With open access power, you begin to enjoy affordable renewable energy from day one.

There are many reasons businesses like yours are considering renewable power over conventional power. For industrial and commercial consumers, open access power translates into regular electricity supply at a lower cost, while also helping reduce their carbon footprint.

Benefits

Zero upfront investment
Since this is an energy sale model, there is no upfront investment required from the consumer.
Guaranteed savings on electricity cost
Electricity purchased from SSK Green Max will be at a tariff much lower than grid tariffs, resulting in energy cost savings on every unit provided
A risk-free solution
With zero investment and upkeep responsibility, this is a capex-free, hassle-free, and risk-free solution.
Tariff certainty for next 20-25 years
By getting into a PPA with us, you will have fixed tariff for the next 20-25 years which is cheaper than prevailing grid electricity tariffs

Benefits

Since this is an energy sale model, there is no upfront investment required from the consumer.

Electricity purchased from SSK Green Max will be at a tariff much lower than grid tariffs, resulting in energy cost savings on every unit provided.

With zero investment and upkeep responsibility, this is a capex-free, hassle-free, and risk-free solution.

By getting into a PPA with us, you will have fixed tariff for the next 20-25 years which is cheaper than prevailing grid electricity tariffs.



Frequently Asked Questions

A typical rooftop solar power plant may not be able to meet the substantial power demands of corporates due to space constraints. This is where utility-scale grid connected Open Access plants come in, which enable greater renewable power generation
Typically, two procurement models are used: third-party PPAs and captive or group captive models
Open access charges under a utility-scale renewable project vary with location and procurement models. Various charges under the Open Access mechanism include the following:
  • Transmission charges
  • Wheeling Charges
  • Transmission losses
  • Wheeling losses
  • Cross-subsidy surcharge (CSS)
  • Additional surcharge (AS)
  • Banking charges
  • Due diligence based on company locations
  • Understanding Open Access Risks
  • Due Diligence on the developer
  • PPA Negotiations

Contractual Challenges:

  • Tenor mismatch between PPA & loan
  • Contract enforcement
  • Contract standardization

Operational Challenges:

  • Grid curtailment risk
  • Performance risk

Regulatory Challenges:

  • Uncertainty around Open Access regulations and charges
  • Inconsistency in eligibility and operating criteria for Open Access
  • Exclusion from Open Access
  • The utilities point of view
  • Paper-based approval process

This is how Captive works:

In the captive capex model, the corporate buyer for a utility scale renewable project makes the upfront capital investment. The buyer owns the power generating asset and the solar power generated is used for the corporate buyer’s self-consumption. SSK Green Max constructs the plant and operates and maintains it over its lifetime.

Benefits

Hedge against electricity charges
Open Access charges from the grid are applicable, but unpredictable charges, such as cross-subsidy surcharge and additional surcharge, are waived off in captive and group captive projects.
Tax benefits
Under this structure, a corporate buyer who holds the asset on its balance sheet is also eligible to claim tax benefits through accelerated depreciation.
No technical experience needed
SSK Green Max will provide complete turnkey EPC solution while commissioning the plant with necessary regulatory approvals and due diligence. In addition, SSK Green Max will also operate and maintain the plant over its lifetime of 25 years.

Benefits

Open Access charges from the grid are applicable, but unpredictable charges, such as cross-subsidy surcharge and additional surcharge, are waived off in captive and group captive projects.

Under this structure, a corporate buyer who holds the asset on its balance sheet is also eligible to claim tax benefits through accelerated depreciation.

SSK Green Max will provide complete turnkey EPC solution while commissioning the plant with necessary regulatory approvals and due diligence. In addition, SSK Green Max will also operate and maintain the plant over its lifetime of 25 years.



Frequently Asked Questions

The corporate buyer must hold at least 26% of the equity while the developer arranges for the rest 74%. A Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) can be signed on mutually agreed terms between the developer and the buyer. In such a project, the O&M responsibilities are usually passed on to the developer

The corporate buyer should ensure that a Group Captive project is fully compliant with the spirit of the law, and with the Electricity Act and the proposed amendments to the Electricity Rules by following two simple guidelines:

  • Equity participation: A genuine equity contribution, equal to 26% of the equity cost, assuming 70/30 debt to equity ratio
  • Economic participation: Which means paid up equity share capital with full rights such as, value, share of profit/dividends, capital appreciation, voting rights, transfer of shares etc. should be applicable for all shareholders
Given the regulatory requirement for the lead captive buyer to own a minimum of 26 percent of the power generating plant, ownership must be transferred to another captive buyer or back to the primary investor if the PPA terminates or expires. Parties typically agree to a put/call option structure to transfer the shares upon expiry/termination of the PPA. If either the captive generator or the buyer is a non-resident or foreign-owned and controlled entity, then subscription/purchase of equity shares as well as subsequent transfer must comply with the Reserve Bank of India’s pricing guidelines.

This is how Group Captive works:

A variant of the captive model is the group captive model. Under the group captive model, a project is developed for the collective usage of one or many corporate buyers. SSK Green Max sets up a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) for group captive wherein the corporate buyer(s) holds only 26 percent of equity in a project and needs to collectively consume at least 51% of the power with the PPA. Here too, SSK Green Max will take complete responsibility for building, operating, and maintaining the project.

Benefits

Minimum investment and risk
The corporate buyer can avail open access benefits of a group captive project without being required to completely own the project. Here, SSK Green Max will bear 74% of the investment – with the corporate buyer holding at least 26% equity. This is done to meet the ownership criteria that will allow exemption of cross-subsidy surcharge.
Guaranteed savings on electricity
Even though the user is required to purchase electricity from SSK Green Max through a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), it comes at much lower rates than prevailing grid tariffs, resulting in guaranteed savings on every unit consumed.
No technical experience needed
SSK Green Max will provide complete turnkey EPC solution while commissioning the plant with necessary regulatory approvals and due diligence. In addition, SSK Green Max will also operate and maintain the plant over its lifetime of 25 years.

Benefits

The corporate buyer can avail open access benefits of a group captive project without being required to completely own the project. Here, SSK Green Max will bear 74% of the investment – with the corporate buyer holding at least 26% equity. This is done to meet the ownership criteria that will allow exemption of cross-subsidy surcharge.

Even though the user is required to purchase electricity from SSK Green Max through a Power Purchase Agreement (PPA), it comes at much lower rates than prevailing grid tariffs, resulting in guaranteed savings on every unit consumed.

SSK Green Max will provide complete turnkey EPC solution while commissioning the plant with necessary regulatory approvals and due diligence. In addition, SSK Green Max will also operate and maintain the plant over its lifetime of 25 years.


Frequently Asked Questions

The corporate buyer must hold at least 26% of the equity while the developer arranges for the rest 74%. A Power Purchase Agreement (PPA) can be signed on mutually agreed terms between the developer and the buyer. In such a project, the O&M responsibilities are usually passed on to the developer

The corporate buyer should ensure that a Group Captive project is fully compliant with the spirit of the law, and with the Electricity Act and the proposed amendments to the Electricity Rules by following two simple guidelines:

  • Equity participation: A genuine equity contribution, equal to 26% of the equity cost, assuming 70/30 debt to equity ratio
  • Economic participation: Which means paid up equity share capital with full rights such as, value, share of profit/dividends, capital appreciation, voting rights, transfer of shares etc. should be applicable for all shareholders
Given the regulatory requirement for the lead captive buyer to own a minimum of 26 percent of the power generating plant, ownership must be transferred to another captive buyer or back to the primary investor if the PPA terminates or expires. Parties typically agree to a put/call option structure to transfer the shares upon expiry/termination of the PPA. If either the captive generator or the buyer is a non-resident or foreign-owned and controlled entity, then subscription/purchase of equity shares as well as subsequent transfer must comply with the Reserve Bank of India’s pricing guidelines.
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