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India establishes solar advisory council

Speaking with industry leaders yesterday, May 24, Union Minister of New and Renewable Energy in India called for "greater investment" in solar energy. The event represented the first meeting of India’s Solar Energy Industry Advisory Council (SEIAC).

To date, India has installed 964 MW worth of photovoltaics.

Flickr/fredericknoronha

At the meeting, Farooq Abdullah called for the industry to invest more funds in developing solar projects in India. He added that the government would offer its "full support" for the deployment of both grid-connected and off-grid systems.

In a statement released on the ministry’s website, it was said that the Minister also asked  industry leaders to "respond favourably and positively to the incentives offered by the Government in this direction."

In response to Farooq Abdullah’s requests, chairman of the new council, SEIAC, said the industry would support the goals of the Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission (JNNSM), which aims to install 20 gigawatts by 2020. To date, cumulative photovoltaic capacity stands at 964 megawatts (MW), of which 745 MW were commissioned in 2012.

SEIAC is expected to advise the Indian government on "various technology related matters, attract investment across the value chain, steps required to encourage R&D and drive down costs and make the Indian solar industry globally competitive."