The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has constituted an Expert Committee to examine requests from net-metering and open access solar power projects seeking commissioning extensions beyond May 31, 2026, along with exemptions from the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) List-II requirement for solar photovoltaic (PV) cells.
The move follows MNRE’s Office Memorandum (OM) dated May 25, 2026, which specified eligibility conditions for projects where either solar modules have already been installed but commissioning remains incomplete, or effective steps have been taken toward project grounding.
Committee members
The four-member Expert Committee has been constituted under an OM dated June 8, 2026. The Committee comprises Shri Sivakumar V. Vepakomma, Director (Power System), Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI), as Chair; Shri S. K. Dey, Executive Director, Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA), as Member; Dr. Jai Prakash, Deputy Director General, National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE), as Member; and Shri Pratik Prasun, Deputy General Manager, SECI, as Member Convener.
The Committee will examine applications submitted through a portal developed by NISE and make project-specific recommendations to MNRE. Final decisions will be taken with the approval of the Secretary, MNRE. The Ministry has stated that field inspections may also be conducted where required.
State-level delegation
MNRE has delegated decision-making powers to States and Union Territories for projects with a solar component capacity of 10 MW (AC) or less.
Under the OM, the seniormost Secretary of the concerned State or Union Territory’s Power, Energy, or Renewable Energy Department will act as the decision-making authority. However, projects spread across multiple States will continue to be handled by MNRE’s central Expert Committee.
The Ministry has also directed States and Union Territories to constitute a four-member State-level Expert Committee within five working days of the OM. The committee is to be headed by an officer of Chief Engineer rank or above, while the remaining members should not be below Superintending Engineer rank. Executive Engineer-level officers may be included where Superintending Engineer-level officers are unavailable.
For portal access, States and Union Territories have been asked to nominate a senior officer to NISE, with a copy to MNRE, for creation of login credentials. The nominated officer will be able to provide application details to the State-level Committee for examination.
Application process
MNRE has set June 30, 2026 as the deadline for submission of claims through the NISE portal. The Ministry stated that no physical applications will be accepted.
Projects approved for exemption will receive a unique ALMM List-II Exemption Certificate through the portal. The certificate will specify the issuing authority and validity period, including the extended commissioning date up to which the exemption remains applicable. In cases where applications are rejected, the portal will generate a response stating the reasons for rejection.
The OM was issued with the approval of the Secretary, MNRE, and signed by Shri Sanjay G. Karndhar, Scientist-E. A copy has also been forwarded to National Informatics Centre (NIC), MNRE for uploading on the Ministry’s website.
Stakeholders with pending net-metering or open access solar projects that missed the May 31, 2026 commissioning deadline have been advised to submit claims through the portal before the June 30 deadline.
The featured photograph is for representation only.
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