The state policy of Gujarat in India, with a population of 50 million, is one of the drivers in Indian solar. Gujarat has the fastest growing economy in the country. Another driver is the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission with an initial feed-in tariff structure, which is already under fire from opponents. That plan, in three phases, looks for one gigawatt to be commissioned by 2013, half of which will be CSP (see diagram below). The state of Rajasthan proposes 550 megawatts in a reverse bidding process.Julian Hawkins,Senior VP of Sales and Marketing at Abound Solar, who had just returned from a long trip to India, sees a number of factors in India’s favor: There’s a lot of sun and a market for power in the country. In Abound’s case, India’s hot weather makes thin film’s temperature coefficient a better fit than crystalline silicon. Gujarat is a dusty place, according to Hawkins, and the diffused light in that environment is also better suited for their thin-film modules. Hawkins sees Gujarat as a “very business focused state,” that is “making sure that the grid is ready for solar.”
Gujarat has a target of installing one gigawatt by the end of 2012 and three gigawatts by 2016 under a fixed tariff structure.
Source: www.greentechmedia.com