Government 1Kw Solar Program for ten thousand homes.Is it for you?
Solar technology has been around for quite some time but the recent drastic fall in the price of Solar panels have created interest even in the strongest critics of the program.
Even though the project was expected to cost above one lakh thirty thousand rupees after subsidies initially was finally launched at a far lower price of around 92 thousands after subsidies.
Now one of the main attraction of this program is the warranty of 5years for the system including the batteries. And 'Anert' is supposed to make sure that the company keeps it's words.
Now as an individual who likes to go for solar power, this is an advantage.
Another advantage is the price factor. If you split the approximate price of the major components of the package for a similar system in the local market it comes like
4 batteries of 150ah costs about Rs.56000/-
A 1kw solar inverter costs about Rs.16000/-
At the rate of Rs.65/watt the 1200 watt solar panels should cost at least Rs.78000/-
So totally the costs for the equipments itself will come about Rs.150000/- (approximate) and you get it for a price of around Rs.92000/-
Now the disadvantage or the matter of concerns are what if the system is not performing as promised?
Already most people are complaining that the promised amount of electricity cannot be achieved and after complaining to the company or the Anert nothing has happened.
Now when you consider the cost of electricity, the company assures a daily average production of minimum 4units of electricity.But according to most consumers they get far less as an average especially in the rainy season. Suppose if the system can generate the promided 4 units per day, In that case when you consider 5years the cost of electricity becomes approximately Rs.12.77/unit which is not economical at the present scenario as we are getting electricity at a far cheaper rate from the grid.
So the cost of electricity decreases provided we can use the system for more than 5years.
Another aspect is that usually only the battery gives trouble on usage and the panels have a performance warranty of 25years.So in effect the recurrent cost is for the batteries only and that will also bring the price/ unit down in the long run.
Now if you consider the practical use of this particular system, I should say it needs modification. The main problem is the capacity. I think when you buy a system worth so much money (Almost 2 lakhs according to Anert without subsidy) you expect at least your television and a medium refrigerator to work on it.So a minimum of close to 2kw should be sufficient to depend solely on solar power for a middle class home.
Another major disadvantage with this system is that the 1000wat solar panel won't completely charge the accompanying 600ah battery bank even on the sunniest day. This means the battery will never charge completely if you use it regularly that means a shortened battery life.Most of the companies agrees to that privately and says the system need at least 1500 watts solar panels for the batteries to charge completely in a day especially if you use it day time also.
Another myth is that you get 1000watts output from the system but in effect most of the systems provide only up to 800 watts of power output at a time.
Another biggest concern is that how far will be the involvement of Anert in case the service provider defaults.
All the above observations are my personal views on the system.
Labels: Alappuzha, anert, Binu Mathew, houses, solar power

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