MNRE, SECI, IRA, EU AD/CVD. This is the permanent home for every article we publish on policy & tenders — news, analysis, and original data, with named experts and human editorial review.
Time-of-Day (ToD) tariffs charge more for electricity in peak hours and less during solar hours. India's 2023 rules set peak rates about 20% higher and solar-hour rates about 20% lower; a March 2026 draft amendment revises the peak multipliers, pushes rollout deadlines to 2027-28 and links ToD to demand response and mandatory storage for large solar prosumers. This explainer decodes both and their effect on rooftop-solar and battery economics.
India has roughly 70 GW of offshore wind potential off Gujarat and Tamil Nadu but zero megawatts installed. A ₹7,453 crore viability gap funding scheme approved in September 2024 aims to build a first 1 GW — 500 MW off each state — with SECI running the auction and the first tender expected off Tamil Nadu in 2026. This analysis explains the scheme, the economics and why India is a decade behind.
Firm and Dispatchable Renewable Energy (FDRE) bundles solar, wind and batteries into one contract that supplies power on a fixed schedule. Since India's June 2023 guidelines, nodal agencies have auctioned roughly 14 GW of FDRE and round-the-clock capacity, with tariffs from ₹4.69 to ₹6.74/kWh and the first project commissioning in 2026.
India is moving to one market-clearing price across all power exchanges. CERC's July 2025 order proposes day-ahead coupling from January 2026, run round-robin by IEX, PXIL and HPX. A Grid-India pilot found just a 0.3% welfare gain, yet it reshapes renewable price discovery and IEX's dominance.
India cut the ₹1.4 lakh crore legacy dues that once choked renewable developers to ₹4,109 crore by February 2026. But ₹25,287 crore of current dues, ₹6.47 lakh crore of accumulated DISCOM losses and a 40 GW PSA backlog keep off-taker risk — and the solar cost of capital — high.
Net metering in India lets rooftop solar owners export surplus power to the grid and offset future bills. Under the Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Rules, net metering is allowed up to 500 kW or sanctioned load, whichever is lower; larger systems use net billing or gross metering. A draft 2026 amendment proposes mandatory storage above 500 kW, while PM Surya Ghar has stripped out fees and separate agreements for small homes.
India's renewable build-out is outpacing its grid. Transmission caused ~two-thirds of the 470 GWh of clean power curtailed on the ISTS in Q1 2026, and line additions are running at ~80% of target. The Green Energy Corridor and a ₹2.44 lakh crore CEA plan must close the gap to hit 500 GW by 2030.
India's first national floating solar assessment, released in June 2026, maps 102 GW of floating PV potential across the country's reservoirs, lifting India's total assessed solar potential to 3,445 GW. With MNRE drafting a dedicated scheme and flagship projects like NTPC Ramagundam's 100 MW and Omkareshwar in Madhya Pradesh, floating solar is moving from pilot to mainstream as a way to spread renewable capacity beyond Rajasthan and Gujarat.
Solar incentives in 2026 can cut your system cost by 20-40% or more: the US offers a 30% federal tax credit, the UK 0% VAT plus export payments, the EU national grants and reduced VAT, and India the PM Surya Ghar subsidy. This guide compares solar incentives across major markets — tax credits, grants, net metering, export tariffs and VAT relief — and explains how to claim and stack them.
Pairing a heat pump with solar in 2026 is a strong combination — the heat pump electrifies your heating, and solar helps power it cheaply. But the seasonal mismatch (solar peaks in summer, heating in winter) means solar offsets only part of heat-pump demand. This guide explains how heat pumps and solar work together, how much solar a heat pump needs, the costs, incentives, and whether the combination is worth it.
Community solar lets you subscribe to a share of a local solar farm and receive credits on your electricity bill — no panels, no roof, no upfront cost. It's ideal for renters, apartment dwellers and shaded homes, typically saving 5-15% on power bills. This guide explains how community solar works in 2026, the US and EU models, the savings, the pros and cons versus rooftop, and who should consider it.
REI Expo 2026 (Renewable Energy India) runs October 1–3 at India Expo Mart, Greater Noida — India's largest annual renewable energy trade show. Expecting 35,000+ visitors and 750+ exhibitors across solar, BESS, inverters, EV, and green hydrogen. Key threads for 2026: ALMM List-IV expansion, India cell PLI ramp, PM Surya Ghar at scale, and India-EU module export economics under CBAM.
India Energy Week 2027 runs February 11–14 at Bharat Mandapam, New Delhi — India's largest energy policy + investment forum, organized by Ministry of Petroleum & Natural Gas with cross-MNRE participation. 100,000+ visitors expected. Coverage spans oil & gas, renewables, hydrogen, EV, biofuels. This guide previews the 2027 edition's renewable energy threads and what to watch.
Hydrogen Technology Expo Europe 2026 runs October 21–22 at Messe Bremen, Germany — Europe's largest dedicated hydrogen technology trade show. Expecting 12,000+ attendees and 600+ exhibitors. 2026 threads: PEM vs alkaline electrolyser commercialization, green hydrogen project FIDs scaling, EU Hydrogen Bank Round-3 results, and industrial offtake from steel + chemicals + ammonia.
Enlit Europe 2026 runs November 24–26 at Fiera Milano, Italy — the continent's largest power + utility industry event, drawing 20,000+ attendees and 750+ exhibitors. 2026 threads: EU grid reinforcement, NZIA implementation, hydrogen + battery hybrid solutions, AI in grid management. This guide previews what to watch.
The UK solar market reached ~18 GW operating capacity by Q1 2026, with Contract for Difference (CfD) Allocation Round 7 awarding ~3.5 GW solar at £50–£68/MWh. The defining 2026 stories are NESO's grid-connection queue reform ('first ready, first connected'), the Future Homes Standard rooftop-solar mandate, and the Clean Power 2030 push toward ~50 GW. This guide covers the UK solar market structure, AR7/AR8, residential economics, developers, and the 2030–2035 outlook.
Portugal's solar market reached ~7 GW operating capacity by Q1 2026, growing ~40%/year — the second-fastest in the EU after Poland. Alqueva is Europe's largest floating solar project, Portugal's auctions set world-record-low prices, and residential autoconsumo is booming — even as a grid-connection backlog and curtailment bite. This guide covers the Portugal solar market: capacity, Alqueva, autoconsumo, pricing, green hydrogen, and the 2030 outlook.
Poland's solar market reached ~22 GW operating capacity by Q1 2026, growing ~30%/year — the fastest among major EU markets. Residential rooftop drove ~70% of early installs, but the net-billing shift, record curtailment and negative prices, the cable-pooling law and URE auctions are reshaping it toward utility-scale + storage. This guide covers the Poland solar market: capacity, Mój Prąd, auctions, grid limits, and the 2030 trajectory.
The Netherlands solar market reached ~28 GW operating capacity by Q1 2026 — among Europe's highest per capita. The salderingsregeling net-metering scheme is being phased out from 2027, suppliers now charge terugleverkosten (export fees), and netcongestie (grid congestion) has frozen many connections. This guide covers Netherlands solar market structure, SDE++ reform, the battery surge, floating-solar leadership, and the 2030 trajectory.
Italy's solar market reached ~38 GW operating capacity by Q1 2026 after the Superbonus 110% residential boom (2020-2023) added ~10 GW. The post-Superbonus market runs on FER 2 utility auctions, the CER energy-community framework, PNRR-funded agrivoltaico, and the new aree idonee permitting rules after farmland ground-mount was restricted. This guide covers Italy solar market structure, incentives, grid limits, and the PNIEC path to 2030.
Greece's solar market reached ~8.5 GW operating capacity by Q1 2026, driven by mainland utility-scale, post-lignite brownfield repowering, and Aegean islands replacing diesel. But record curtailment has forced a pivot to storage — Greece auctioned ~1 GW of standalone batteries — while the Crete interconnector reshapes island economics. This guide covers the Greece solar market: RAE auctions, Just Transition, islands, storage, grid saturation, and the 2030 outlook.
France's solar market reached ~24 GW operating capacity by Q1 2026, growing ~25%/year. CRE (Commission de Régulation de l'Énergie) tenders drive utility-scale, while MaPrimeRénov', the prime à l'autoconsommation and the loi APER carport mandate drive distributed solar. EDF Renouvelables leads developers; the PPE targets 75-100 GW by 2035. This guide covers France solar market structure, CRE auction dynamics, the module carbon criterion, the ombrières mandate, grid bottlenecks, and residential economics.
EU solar grid connection delays in 2026 vary dramatically by country and TSO — from 6 months in Spain to 7+ years in the Netherlands and parts of Germany. Total EU solar projects stuck in interconnection queues exceeds 400 GW — far more than annual deployment. This guide maps EU TSO solar interconnection queue times, identifies the worst bottlenecks, and explains the grid reinforcement plans being implemented.
Germany's EEG solar feed-in tariff (Einspeisevergütung) in 2026 ranges from 5.81 to 12.92 ct/kWh depending on system size and feed-in modality. The tariff is guaranteed 20 years from commissioning. The Solarpaket I (effective 2024) and Solarpaket II (effective 2025) reforms simplified registration, allowed shared building solar (Mieterstrom), and reduced administrative barriers. This guide covers the 2026 EEG rates, eligibility, and the reform trajectory.
The EU Solar Rooftops Directive (embedded in the revised Energy Performance of Buildings Directive, EPBD) mandates rooftop solar on new and major-renovated commercial buildings from 2027, public buildings from 2028, and existing large commercial from 2029. By 2030 the directive could trigger ~150 GW of new EU rooftop solar capacity. This guide covers what's mandated, when, and the compliance pathways.
The EU Net-Zero Industry Act (NZIA) targets 40% of EU solar demand to be met by domestic manufacturing by 2030. As of 2026, EU solar manufacturing capacity sits at ~12 GW of modules and ~6 GW of cells — far below the demand of ~70 GW/year. This guide maps EU solar manufacturing capacity, names the active gigafactory projects, and explains the NZIA's funding and procurement mechanisms.
The EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM) targets cement, iron/steel, aluminum, hydrogen, electricity, and fertilizers as of 2026 — solar modules are NOT directly in scope. But CBAM indirectly affects EU solar imports via the steel and aluminum content of trackers and racking. This guide breaks down the actual 2026 CBAM impact on EU solar imports and what's coming in 2027 if scope expands.
Voluntary carbon market crashed in 2022-2023 after integrity scandals, recovered partially through 2024-2025 with new quality standards (ICVCM Core Carbon Principles). 2026 sees clearer two-tier market — high-integrity removals trading $80-150/tonne, conventional avoidance credits $5-20/tonne. Total market value ~$2.5 billion in 2025.
Thailand's cumulative renewable capacity reached approximately 16 GW by Q1 2026 across solar (10 GW), wind (1.5 GW), biomass (3 GW), small hydro + others (1.5 GW). ERC tender rounds 2024-2026 awarded 5+ GW of solar + wind. Direct PPA framework operationalising for corporate procurement. Net Zero by 2065 target.
Industrial electrification — replacing fossil fuel combustion with electric heating in industrial processes — gained momentum in 2025-2026. Industrial heat pumps reach process temperatures up to 200°C; e-boilers and resistance heating cover 250-1,000°C; electric arc furnaces serve very high temperatures. EU + US policy + carbon pricing driving adoption.
India's smart meter rollout under RDSS (Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme) reached approximately 150 million installed by Q1 2026, against the 250 million by FY 2026 target. Major DISCOMs in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu leading. Implementation challenges include data analytics capabilities, customer billing accuracy, and DERMS integration.
India Energy Storage Week (IESW) 2026 runs July 2-4 in New Delhi, gathering 5,000+ Indian renewable energy storage professionals. India Clean Energy Renewable Conference (ICRC) co-located. Focus: SECI standalone BESS tenders, ALMM cell list rollout, ACC PLI scheme Phase 2 awards, behind-the-meter C&I BESS scaling.
EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) expanded in 2024-2026: maritime shipping in scope from 2024, ETS2 (buildings + road transport) launching in 2027 with operational ramp-up in 2026. CBAM operational financial settlement begins January 2027. EU ETS carbon price stabilized at €70-90/tonne in 2025-2026.
Critical mineral supply chains for the energy transition remain dominated by China processing (60-85%) despite mining diversification efforts. Lithium prices stabilized at $13K-17K/tonne in 2025-2026. Nickel oversupply in Indonesia depressing prices. Copper demand outpacing supply; structural deficit expected mid-2030s. EU + US critical minerals strategies under implementation. This deep-dive covers mineral-by-mineral analysis, processing dominance, geopolitical responses, and what developers should do.
Carbon Capture, Utilisation and Storage (CCUS) for thermal power has 40+ Mt CO2/year operational capacity globally by Q1 2026 — mostly natural gas. Coal plant CCUS retrofits remain economically marginal at $80-150/tonne CO2 captured. Hub-and-cluster models in US Gulf Coast + UK + Norway making industrial CCUS viable. India CCUS pilots emerging.
EU Battery Regulation requires digital Battery Passport for industrial + EV + LMT (light means of transport) batteries from February 2027. Provides QR-code accessible data on origin, materials, manufacturing emissions, recycled content, performance, end-of-life management. First major Battery Passport pilots launching 2026.
Asia Clean Energy Summit (ACES) 2026 runs October 28-30 in Singapore, gathering 12,000+ Asian renewable energy professionals. Focus topics: ASEAN Power Grid implementation, Singapore-Australia-Indonesia subsea power import projects, Asian green finance frameworks, and pan-regional supply chain coordination.
Article 6 of the Paris Agreement creates two international carbon market mechanisms: Article 6.2 (bilateral cooperation) and Article 6.4 (multilateral UN-supervised mechanism). After years of rule-setting, 2026 sees first commercial-scale bilateral 6.2 transactions and 6.4 mechanism operational launch. India, Switzerland, Singapore, Japan among early movers.
World Hydrogen Summit 2026 runs May 18–20 in Rotterdam, gathering 13,000+ attendees from 130 countries. After multiple 2024–2025 project cancellations and FIDs slipping, the 2026 conversation is brutally pragmatic: which projects are actually achieving FID, who has secured offtake, and where the cost gap to grey hydrogen actually narrows.
Global SAF production reached approximately 1.5 million tonnes in 2025, roughly 0.4% of total jet fuel demand. EU ReFuelEU Aviation mandate (2% minimum SAF in jet fuel) started January 2026, and mandates ratchet to 70% by 2050. SAF costs remain 3-5x conventional jet fuel. Hydrotreated esters dominate; power-to-liquid SAF emerges.
RE+ 2026 runs September 8–11 in Las Vegas, the largest North American renewable energy event with 50,000+ expected attendees. After Treasury's tightened IRA domestic-content rules, the show's central question: which module + inverter + BESS suppliers can actually deliver US-cell, US-content solutions at scale by 2028.
PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana pays ₹30,000 for 1 kW, ₹60,000 for 2 kW, and ₹78,000 for 3 kW or larger residential rooftop solar, with collateral-free loans up to ₹2 lakh. Apply at pmsuryaghar.gov.in. By June 2026 the scheme crossed 33 lakh installations, 12 GW, and ₹22,750 crore disbursed. This guide covers eligibility, the National Portal process, documents, loans, and rejection traps.
Mexico's renewable energy capacity reached approximately 28 GW by Q1 2026, with utility-scale solar (12 GW) and wind (8 GW) dominant. The Sheinbaum administration's reversal of AMLO-era restrictions has reopened private renewable investment. Long-term auction structure expected to relaunch by mid-2026 after years of suspension.
IMO's 2023 Strategy targets net-zero shipping by ~2050 with 20% emissions reduction by 2030. The MEPC 82 (Sep 2024) approved economic + technical measures including a global fuel standard and emissions pricing. Methanol and ammonia emerge as primary alternative fuels; LNG remains transitional. First ammonia-fuelled vessels commissioning 2026-2027.
Intersolar Europe 2026 runs June 17–19 in Munich as part of The Smarter E Europe — expecting 110,000+ visitors and 3,000+ exhibitors across solar, storage, e-mobility, and smart grids. Key threads: EU module manufacturing ramp, perovskite tandem commercialization, residential BESS+heat pump bundles, and CBAM-driven supply chain shifts.
Indonesia's Just Energy Transition Partnership (JETP, $20B+ pledged) implementation has accelerated through 2025-2026. Coal capacity remains at 45 GW with planned early retirements of 9 GW. Renewable additions reached 15 GW cumulative — solar growing fastest. The 'captive coal' carve-out for industrial nickel processing remains a contested issue.
Heat pump sales in Europe reached approximately 3 million units in 2025, up from a 2.2 million low in 2024. REPowerEU targets 60 million installed by 2030 — still far behind required pace. Major manufacturers (Daikin, Mitsubishi Electric, Bosch, Vaillant) scaling production. Subsidy variations across EU member states driving widely different national adoption.
Green steel (hydrogen direct reduction iron, H2-DRI) commercial-scale operation begins in 2026 with HYBRIT (Sweden), H2 Green Steel (Boden), and Tata Steel (Netherlands + India pilot). Cost premium vs blast furnace steel remains 25-40%. EU CBAM operational July 2026 + ongoing Indian commitments are the primary demand drivers. This deep-dive covers how green steel is made, the cost gap, the commercial-scale launches, demand drivers, and the India vs EU race.
COP31 in November 2026, jointly hosted by Australia and Pacific island nations, has three substantive agenda items beyond pageantry: NDC ratchets ahead of the 2025 baseline year, Article 6 carbon market operational rules, and Loss & Damage Fund capitalisation. Renewable energy commitments will be a major theme.
Africa Energy Forum 2026 runs June 23–26 in Cape Town, drawing 2,500+ delegates from across the continent's energy sector. Focus topics: South Africa's REIPPPP expansion, Egypt's solar export potential to Europe, Morocco's green hydrogen ambitions, Nigeria mini-grid scaling, and the continent's just transition partnerships with developed nations.
India's cumulative installed solar crossed 150 GW by March 2026 and roughly 157 GW by end-May, against the ~280 GW solar component of the 500 GW non-fossil 2030 target. FY26 added a record ~44 GW. The binding constraints have shifted from deployment pace to storage, transmission and DISCOM offtake.
Solar panel recycling in 2026: the EU WEEE Directive mandates 85% material recovery, India's PV waste rules are due H2 2026, and China has required recycling since 2024. Glass and aluminium recovery is commercially viable; silver and silicon remain marginal. This guide covers why recycling matters, the regulations, how panels are recycled, the economics, second-life panels, and what owners should do.
PM-KUSUM has deployed ~2.8 million solar agricultural pumps and 4 GW of grid-connected solar by Q1 2026. State implementation varies sharply — Maharashtra and Rajasthan lead; Punjab and Haryana lag — driven by DISCOM cooperation, subsidy-disbursement speed and local installer ecosystems. This guide covers the three components, state performance, the Component-A pivot, farmer economics, and the expected KUSUM 2.0.
MNRE's May 2026 ALMM List-III update adds 12 GW of newly certified module capacity and removes 1.8 GW from non-compliant producers. The update brings total ALMM-listed capacity to over 100 GW. Eight new producers cleared, including three with under 1 GW capacity.
India's domestic solar inverter manufacturing capacity reached 18 GW in Q1 2026, up from 12 GW one year ago. PLI scheme for advanced inverter technology is under MNRE consultation, expected to formally launch H2 2026. Sungrow, Sineng, Delta, Hitachi Energy, and emerging Indian players Servotech and Statcon are positioning for the next phase.
India has installed roughly 14 GW of rooftop solar against the 30 GW national target. With 18 months remaining, closing the 16 GW gap requires a 3× pace acceleration. PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana subsidy uptake has accelerated since Q4 2025, but DISCOM net-metering bottlenecks remain the binding constraint.
India's Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) approved the unified ancillary services regulation in March 2026, opening BESS revenue stacking to standalone storage projects. The framework allows BESS to earn from energy markets, frequency regulation, and secondary reserves concurrently — addressing a long-standing gap in Indian storage economics.
Treasury's January 2026 final rules on the IRA's 10% domestic-content adder tightened cell-eligibility tests. To qualify, modules must use US-manufactured cells (not just assembled-in-US modules with imported cells) by January 2028. Mexico-assembled modules with Chinese cells no longer qualify.
Major grid codes — IEEE 1547-2018 in the US, EN 50549 in Europe, IEC 62116, and India's CEA technical standards — have all tightened reactive power and grid support requirements through 2025–2026. Inverter procurement RFPs now need to specify grid-code compliance explicitly; assuming default behaviour is no longer safe.
SECI and state DISCOMs cleared 4.2 GW of standalone battery energy storage capacity in the January–March 2026 window, with the lowest discovered tariff falling to ₹2.18/kWh — a 14% drop versus Q4 2025.
India's RPO compliance rate across state DISCOMs averaged 78% in FY 2025, against statutory targets typically in the 24–43% range. Most leading states (Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat) over-comply; laggards (UP, Bihar, J&K) consistently miss by 15–30 percentage points. Penalty enforcement remains weak.
India's Green Energy Open Access Rules 2022 have driven 5+ GW of corporate renewable PPA contracting in 2024–2026. Tech companies, manufacturing majors, and retail chains have signed multi-year procurement deals. State-level implementation variation remains the binding constraint on faster scaling.
India's energy storage policy framework spans MNRE, CERC, MoP, and CEA — without a single comprehensive statute. Key 2025–2026 developments include CERC ancillary services regulation, draft Energy Storage Obligation policy, and PLI for advanced cell manufacturing. The fragmentation creates predictable regulatory friction for developers.
India had commissioned only ~8,000 tonnes per annum of green hydrogen by February 2026, against the 5 MTPA-by-2030 target — but SECI has now allocated 862,000 TPA of production, 724,000 TPA of green ammonia, and 3,000 MW of electrolyser manufacturing under SIGHT. This deep-dive covers the Mission, tranche allocations, record-low ammonia prices, cost trajectory, the offtake gap, and what it takes to hit 5 MTPA.
India's renewable energy sector workforce reached 1.1 million in 2025, projected to need 2.3 million by 2030 to support the 280 GW solar target plus storage, wind, and hydrogen build-out. Skills gaps are most acute in BESS commissioning, grid-forming inverter operations, and floating solar engineering.
MNRE's expected ALMM List of Approved Cells (first edition Q3 2026) combined with PLI scheme Phase 2 awards (announced Q1 2026) is reshaping Indian cell manufacturing. Reliance, Adani, Avaada Electro, Premier Energies, and Waaree are scaling commercial cell production. Domestic cell capacity should cross 100 GW by end-2027.
The EU's Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism enters its definitive phase in 2026 with an expanded scope that now touches polysilicon, ingots, and select inverter components. Chinese and Indian exporters face new embedded-emissions reporting obligations that will reshape EU module sourcing through 2028.