India has more than 102 GWp of deployable floating solar PV potential, according to a new report released by the National Institute of Solar Energy (NISE). The assessment raises the country’s total assessed solar energy potential from ground-mounted and floating PV installations to 3,445 GWp.
A previous NISE report estimated India’s deployable ground-mounted solar PV potential at 3,343 GWp (DC capacity).
The floating solar assessment was recently unveiled by Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy and Consumer Affairs Pralhad Venkatesh Joshi, who said the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) is working on a dedicated scheme to accelerate floating solar deployment across the country.
NISE’s assessment applied a series of screening criteria to identify suitable water bodies for floating solar development. The study considered hydro-lake water bodies with a minimum area of 10 hectares, excluding smaller water bodies considered unsuitable for utility-scale projects. Additional criteria included year-round water availability, water depths between 3 m and 30 m, minimum global horizontal irradiation (GHI) of 4.5 kWh/m²/day, and proximity of up to 10 km from both road networks and electrical substations.
For the assessment, NISE assumed the deployment of 545 W solar modules with 21% efficiency installed at a tilt angle of 5 degrees. The institute estimates that 0.019 km² of water surface area is required to deploy 1 MW of floating solar capacity under these conditions.
To minimize ecological impacts and preserve competing uses such as fisheries, the assessment limits floating solar installations to a maximum of 20% of the surface area of each eligible water body.
Out of a total mapped water body area of 10,725.99 km² across India, NISE identified 4,546.01 km² as suitable for floating solar development. Applying the 20% utilization cap to each state-level body area results in an effective deployment area of 1,946.24 km², corresponding to a national floating solar potential of 102.18 GWp.
Maharashtra recorded the highest assessed potential at 16.28 GWp, followed by Madhya Pradesh at 14.89 GWp, Karnataka at 13.69 GWp, Odisha at 12.81 GWp, and Telangana at 10.72 GWp.
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