The Director-General of Trade and Remedies (DGTR) has recommended extending the prevalent Safeguard duty on imported Solar cells for an additional one more year. The extension has been recommended with a revision in tariff at 14.90% for the first six months and then 14.50% for the subsequent six months. As in effect currently, the duty is charged at 15% for solar panels imported from China and Malaysia.

Background of the Safeguard Duty

On 30th July 2018, a 25% safeguard duty was imposed on all the solar cells and modules imported from China and Malaysia. The duty as per the schedule was revised at 15% for the year 2019~20. The imposition of the duty was backed with a need to protect the domestic industry as over 80% of the solar modules used in India were imported from these countries. The duty is slated to expire on 31st July 2020.

The Reason of Extension of the Duty

In a review conducted by the DGTR in March 2020, it was stated that while the duty has improved the position of the domestic industry in the last two years, there is still need for some support. And a one-year extension will be adequate for the same. The review was done following an application submitted by the Indian Solar Manufacturers Association (ISMA) seeking to extend by another four years.

Impact of the Duty on the Consumers and MYSUN’s take on it

The safeguard duty has always seemed to draw conflicting opinions. While it is implemented with the vision to sustain domestic players, it increases the cost of solar systems. This reduces the benefits to the end consumers. We hope that this extension in duty will bring good in the long run.

Chandigarh has over 2900 small, large and medium scale units and is increasingly becoming a lucrative destination of many business leaders. One factor leading the city towards such transformation is the city’s inclination towards more economical sources of energy i.e the renewable sources of energy. Almost 67% of all the power requirements of Chandigarh is met via these sources, and this share is going to increase further as the city has recently decided to increase its Solar energy generation target to 100 MW, achievable by 2022.

As per media reports, the target was self-revised by the state from the earlier target of 50MW, after the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy(MNRE) enhanced the city’s solar target from 50 MW to 69 MW.

This new development is a signal towards the great opportunity that solar energy holds in store for businesses in the city. While we have already explained previously how corporates and SMEs can save Millions by going Solar in Chandigarh and how the MYSUN Solar Calculator is helping businesses in Chandigarh determine their solar savings potential let’s see what does this new development exactly mean for businesses in the city.

What does this mean for Businesses, Industries and Corporations based out of Chandigarh?

The increase in the solar target of the city is an indication of the solar potential of the city and a move towards sustainability.

Chandigarh is a commercial hub which has housed businesses, industries and corporations of every size. Power, as it is across every city and state in the country, forms an indispensable resource for businesses in the city. This makes businesses, whether small or large, incur lakhs on power bills every year, which businesses in Chandigarh can avoid easily by going solar. Just like this label printing company situated in the city of Gurgaon, which is looking at saving 7~15 crore rupees in 25 years time because of its decision to go solar.

Check your Solar Savings Potential in Chandigarh today

One of the first steps of going solar is to check your solar savings potential. And MYSUN, the largest online rooftop solar platform in India, makes the identification of it easy with its advanced Solar Calculator. The AI-backed technology-driven calculator allows you to check your savings from solar, the optimum solar system size, the required investment, the return on investment and available financing options in a matter of seconds. To give the most precise results, the calculator is mapped to the solar irradiation and tariff of every city and state in India, including Chandigarh.

For example, as per the solar calculator, the Solar Savings Potential of a commercial set up in IT Park Road, Phase - I, Manimajra, Chandigarh with an average monthly electricity bill of 2 lakh rupees is immense as it will bring the bill down to only INR 79, 724 every month. This gives a lifetime savings of INR 4.2Cr, which is very significant on an investment of just INR 35.7 Lakhs.

Grab the opportunity and Go solar with MYSUN’s Easy Solar Financing Solutions today

With this increased target, going solar will be the need of the hour for Chandigarh. With MYSUN’s various solar financing solutions businesses have the flexibility to go solar with easy payment plans. Businesses can either choose to pay for the solar system upfront, in easy EMI’s or even as per unit consumption of their solar energy as applicable under the Power Purchase Agreement.

Businesses all around the world have started making solar energy as their primary source of power. And Chandigarh, a centre of numerous small and large scale businesses, is following the footsteps. The city which is on the mission of becoming a smart city in India will for sure become solar-driven one day and businesses will flourish because of it. Therefore, start the solar journey of your business in Chandigarh today & reap the benefits of being an early adopter i.e higher financial benefits. Call MYSUN Solar Advisors on +91 8448380218 or write to them at [email protected].

No industry has been left unimpacted by the ongoing crisis. Smart businesses, therefore, are turning towards opportunities that are risk-free and in the long term will help the business grow and expand without becoming a liability. Going solar, therefore, is on the priority list of several smart business leaders as it is one such investment that saves businesses Lakhs of Rupees on power bills over the period of 25 years.

If you are also considering going solar, and are reading to know more about it, here are the 7 unbelievable benefits of solar power for businesses which will help you make your mind up and go solar:

1. You don’t just contribute to the environment but Save Lakhs of Rupees every year by going solar

Going solar might seem like an environmental decision but the reality is that for businesses, it is also a strategic business decision. Going solar makes businesses power-independent and they generate their own electricity. This reduces their dependence on the grid and saves them a fortune. For example, the below client of MYSUN, which is a Yarn and Fabric manufacturing industry based out of Bhilwara in Rajasthan, is looking at saving a whopping Rs 5,850 Lakhs on power bills over the 25 years of its solar journey.

Saving this big amount naturally gives businesses a competitive edge in the market along with resources to increase their growth and profitability. To know how much your business can save with solar energy you can run MYSUN’s AI-backed technology-driven Solar Calculator.

2. You can use solar power at night as well. Thanks to hybrid systems.

The advancement in technology has made it possible to use solar power at night too. With the help of hybrid solar systems, you can store the power generated by your solar system during the daytime and use them at night. This is made possible as hybrid solar systems are both connected to the grid and have battery banks attached to them.

3. Solar Systems need minimal maintenance

One of the key reasons why adopting solar energy is economically viable for businesses is that solar systems require negligible maintenance. With MYSUN’s pool of easy service packages maintaining the largest of solar systems is also affordable. To know more about these packages you can get in touch with our service experts on 1800 3012 0101.

4. You don’t have to pay everything upfront

Going solar has never been easier before. With flexible solar financing solutions from MYSUN, you can now solarize your business in easy EMIs. Under the MYSUN Deferred payment solution, your business can pay just 20~30% of the solar system cost and the rest can be deferred over a period of 3~5 years. The best thing is that these instalments are always less than or equal to the savings that your business will make on its monthly electricity bills. So in a way, your solar system will pay for itself. To add to the variety, MYSUN also makes solar loans available to its customers through Partner Banks/NBFCs.

5. You can avail tax benefits by going solar

Going solar also gives businesses an opportunity to avail of tax benefits. These benefits may vary from state to state depending on the Solar Policy of the state your business is based at. For example, as per the solar policy of Rajasthan, any business going solar in the state can avail of a 10 year tax holiday on the solar project.

Not to forget, since solar systems are an asset to a company, this also allows businesses to avail Accelerated Depreciation benefits.

6. You can go solar without incurring the capital cost of the solar system

In order to solarize your business, you don’t necessarily need to incur the capital cost of the solar system. Under the PPA(Purchase Power Agreement) model of going solar, you can go solar in a way that a third party can bear the cost of the solar system and your business can pay for the per unit of the solar energy that it would consume.

7. Your business is immune from power tariff rises

If you solarize your business under the PPA model, you in a way immune your business from future hikes in electricity tariffs. This is because the PPA agreements last for 15~25 years. So your business pays a fixed earlier agreed tariff for the next 15~25 years of your solar journey.

In case you don’t solarize your business under the PPA model and choose to go solar under the CAPEX model(which requires you to pay the capital cost of the solar system upfront) because of the benefits which come with it, like accelerated depreciation, low Levelized cost of electricity and tax benefits, you would still reduce the impact of any future electricity tariff hikes.

Businesses across India are expediting their success stories by going solar. We are sure these 7 things must have got you thinking about when should you start Start your solar journey? Start today by calling MYSUN Solar Advisors on +91 8448380218 or writing us at [email protected].