Solar investment turns liability for Nagpur hotels amid new rules

Nagpur: The Nagpur Residential Hotels Association (NRHA) has raised serious concerns over the current electricity tariff structure and Time-of-Day (ToD) regulations, stating that recent policy changes have drastically reduced the effective use of solar power while increasing financial burden on the hospitality sector.According to NRHA, hotels that invested heavily in rooftop solar systems now utilise only a fraction of the energy they generate. Data compiled from multiple member establishments shows that, on an average, barely 4.6% of total electricity consumption occurs during designated ToD hours (9am to 5pm). As a result, only about 7.6% of solar energy generated is actually consumed by hotels, while a massive 92.4% is exported to the grid.Despite this export, hoteliers claim they are not adequately compensated. Instead, they are required to pay a grid support charge of Rs1.96 per unit on the entire solar energy generated. This has effectively turned what was once seen as a cost-saving green investment into an additional recurring expense.A case in point highlights the severity of the issue. In March, a city hotel recorded a total electricity consumption of 5,923 units, with a Rs 1.70 lakh bill. During the same period, its solar installation generated 4,217 units. However, only 324 units — produced during ToD hours — were adjusted against consumption. The remaining solar generation was exported to the grid, yet the hotel was still charged grid support fees on the full 4,217 units generated.NRHA president Tejinder Singh Renu said the current framework penalises those who adopted renewable energy in good faith. He argued that the mismatch between solar generation hours and peak consumption patterns of hotels — typically during evening and night — makes it nearly impossible to derive intended benefits from solar investments.The association has urged the state govt and the Maharashtra Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) to revisit the policy. Key demands include redefining ToD hours for the hospitality sector and ensuring a fair mechanism for solar energy utilisation and compensation. NRHA has warned that unless corrective steps are taken, the policy could discourage future investment in renewable energy and adversely impact the city's hospitality industry.# Expert speakSolar expert Sudhir Budhe said that in the new MERC order, two main points have been introduced: "The first is grid support charge of Rs1.96 per unit for LT consumers having more than 10kW solar system, including household, commercial as well as industrial. This means that people have to pay for every unit they generate. The second one is change in ToD hours, but it is applicable to commercial and industrial consumers with more than 10kW solar projects. Under this, consumers will only be able to use solar units for eight hours (9am to 5pm) as against 17 hours (midnight to 5pm)," said Budhe.