India adds 7.3 GW solar energy capacity in 2019: Report

India added 7.3 GW of solar energy generation capacity in 2019 and holds a strong pipeline of 23.7 GW under construction projects, said a report.

Mercom Communications India, a subsidiary of global clean energy communications and consulting firm Mercom Capital Group, has released its report 'India Solar Market Leaderboard 2020' on Wednesday.

The report covers market share and shipment rankings across the Indian solar supply chain in 2019.

During the calendar year (CY) 2019, India installed 7.3 GW of solar power across the country, consolidating its position as the third-largest solar market in the world, it said.

India also had a robust pipeline of utility-scale projects under development of 23.7 GW at the end of 2019, with another 31.5 GW of tenders pending auction, it added.

“The solar market leaders have changed in almost every category compared with last year. With a tough year ahead, we expect strong, resilient, and innovative companies continue to do well,” said Raj Prabhu, CEO of Mercom Capital Group, in the statement.

The report reveals that the top ten large-scale project developers account for 68 per cent market share in 2019.

ReNew Power was the top utility-scale developer during 2019, while Azure Power owns the largest project pipeline, the report said.

There are around 29 large-scale solar developers with a project pipeline of 100 MW or more in India.

Large-scale solar installations in 2019 accounted for 85 per cent with 6.2 GW. Also, solar accounted for 41 per cent of new power capacity additions in 2019 behind coal which accounted for 44 per cent.

Companies offering engineering, procurement, construction (EPC) services saw a lot of projects moved to 2020 due to delays caused by general elections, land, and evacuation issues, among others, the report said.

Mahindra Susten was the top EPC player for utility-scale solar installations in 2019, followed by L&T, it added.

Tata Power Solar had the largest cumulative rooftop portfolio, followed by CleanMax Solar, the report said.

At the end of 2019, the top ten rooftop solar installers represented 34 per cent of the total rooftop solar market share.

In 2019, the rooftop solar market growth came down by 33 per cent compared to CY (calendar year) 2018.

Huawei led the solar inverter market in India in 2019, followed by Sungrow. Other top string inverter suppliers included Growatt, Solis Inverters, and Delta Power Solutions.

At the end of December 2019, Trina Solar was the leading module supplier to India in terms of cumulative shipments, while Waaree Energies, Adani, and Risen Energy held the top spot in CY 2019. The top ten module suppliers accounted for over 62 per cent of the market in 2019.

Ganges Internationale was the top supplier of solar mounting structures in 2019, followed by Purshotam Profiles and Strolar. Scorpius Trackers was the top supplier of solar trackers in 2019.

Rays Power Experts and CleanMax Solar were the top open access developers as of December 2019.

Ecoppia was the top supplier of solar robotic cleaning systems as of December 2019, it added.