India's specialised developers get boost as open access PPA market doubles

They had access to financing sources with a lower cost of capital.

India’s specialised project developers, along with larger-sized independent power producers, have shown a growth in market share as the open access power purchase agreement (PPA) solar market grew 2.5 times to 2.9 GW for the past two years, a report by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development (WBCSD) revealed.

These national developers have the competitive advantage of having access to large corporate buyers as well as financing sources with a lower cost of capital, the report noted.

On the other hand, the market share of regional players have contracted. They have been responsible for structuring most early open access renewable PPA projects, as they had easier access to land and was better placed to deal with local distribution companies (DISCOMs) and regulators.

In H1 2019, India remained the second largest market for corporate PPAs with a global share of 7.4% or 440 MW installed, but estimates suggested that the annual corporate PPA renewable addition in India contracted 30-35% for the full year.