Rajasthan, one of the largest states of India is one of the most popular industrial hubs of the country. With such an affluent economy, power becomes an uncompromised necessity for businesses in the state. While most businesses depend on traditional sources of electricity to fulfill their power requirements, some enterprises are smartly switching to solar and saving millions in the process. For example :

1. The below textile manufacturing unit in Bhilwara, Rajasthan, which is saving approximately INR 190 Lacs every year on their power bills after going solar with MYSUN. The details of which you can check here.

   




2. The below cement packaging manufacturing unit in Chittorgarh, Rajasthan, which is saving INR 49 Lacs every year after going solar with MYSUN. The details are here.

   

Similar to these businesses, any business in Rajasthan can increase their financial capabilities by harnessing the abundantly available solar energy in the state. So what does it look like for your business? How much could you save? The MYSUN Solar calculator explains this, precisely.

Your Business’s Solar Potential as per the MYSUN Solar Calculator

The MYSUN Solar Calculator is an inhouse developed technologically advanced tool which helps power consumers evaluate their solar savings potential before going solar. It does so by furnishing a detailed report on the savings a business can make on power bills by going solar, the investment that the business will need to make in order to go solar, the most optimum solar system size that the business should consider to meet all its power requirements and the economics of going solar under different financing options and models of solar. Let’s check the case for Rajasthan.

Suppose you are a Prime Packaging Industry in Jaipur, Rajasthan and incur a monthly expenditure of INR 10L on your power bills which leads to an annual expenditure of INR 1.2Cr. Within ten seconds, using this input the MYSUN Solar Calculator tells you that your business can bring its power bills down from INR 10 Lacs a month to INR 3.8 Lacs a month:

That’s a saving of INR 71 Lacs every year and a lifetime saving of INR 21 Crores. Saving this capital can give your business a surplus cash flow which could be invested in more important areas of business, such as upgrading your operational technologies in the future to improve your business processes and excel in the market.

Solar systems have a lifetime of at least 25 years. Investing in it basically assures businesses of free power once they break even in 3~4 years time. This goes to show that solar is not just necessary for businesses to save money, but also to improve their profits and boost long-term growth. Therefore, run the MYSUN Solar Calculator now, check your business’s true solar potential in Rajasthan and go solar today.

To know the things that every business and industry should take care of before starting their solar journey, check out our article - 6 Things that Every Industry Should Consider Before Going Solar.

Image Source: commons.wikimedia.org

Chandigarh for the past few years has emerged as a top outsourcing hub and thriving hub for businesses, especially in the IT and higher education space. One of the key reasons for this is the availability of a great business environment and a skilled workforce. Therefore, Chandigarh has evolved as a market with a lot of investor interest with thriving SME and MSMEs. Along with neighbouring cities - Mohali and Panchkula, Chandigarh is looking to become a focal point for upcoming businesses.

It is imperative for businesses and entrepreneurs in Chandigarh to understand the importance of solar energy when it comes to running a profitable business in these modern times. We have written about how corporates and SMEs in Chandigarh can go solar and save millions, but what about the solar savings potential for businesses in the UT?

This is where MYSUN’s Solar Calculator can help, by giving business owners a quick estimation of their business or industry’s savings potential if they go solar, in just 10 seconds.

The Solar Savings Potential of Businesses in Chandigarh:

Let’s take the example of an emerging IT business with its centres based out of IT Park Road, Phase - 1, Manimajra, Chandigarh; having a monthly expenditure of INR 1,00,000 on their power bills which leads to an annual expenditure of up to INR 12,00,000.

Within ten seconds, using this input the MYSUN Solar Calculator tells us about the potential savings of the business centre.

As you can see, by solarizing one commercial building the IT business stands to save INR 56,076 every month, which sums up to a total savings of around 6.7 lacs annually. And that’s just for one commercial establishment, if the IT business were set to solarize four of their commercial properties, they could be potentially looking at annual savings of around 27 lacs, and lifetime savings above 7.6 crores.

Saving such a copious amount of electricity expenditure can lead to great positive results in the long-run for any future business. Given that the lifetime of a Solar Plant is about 25 years, you are basically assured of free power, once your solar system pays back for itself in 3~4 years time. This goes to show that solar is not just necessary for businesses to save money, but also to improve their bottom line and boost long-term profitability.

Business owners and entrepreneurs need to start investing in solar energy as it can have great positive implications for them in the future, and as Chandigarh is set to be the next business hub, going solar in Chandigarh should be a key priority in their business plans.

MYSUN’s blog series on the Interesting ways the world is using Solar Energy has in the past explored the various innovations in solar technology, such as solar boats, cars, robots, paint, and even airships. Although all these innovations are great and have pushed the envelope of global solar technology, there has always been one caveat when it comes to solar – how do you generate solar energy at night?

There may finally be an answer:

Solar Panels That Work at Night

Jeremy Munday, a professor in the electrical and computer engineering department of the University of California, Davis, recently appeared in the news for discovering a way to generate electricity from solar panels even after the sun has set. The professor and researcher have been working on a solar panel prototype which in its current phase of R&D can produce 50 watts of electricity per square meter, which is about a quarter of what traditional solar panels can generate during a bright sunny day.

How Does This Technology Work?

As per Professor Jeremy Munday, "A regular solar cell generates power by absorbing sunlight, which causes a voltage to appear across the device and for the current to flow. In these new devices, light is instead emitted and the current and voltage move in the opposite direction, but you still generate power. You have to use different materials, but the physics is the same."

These solar panels are made of thermo-radiative cells to facilitate the process, as the heat required to run the process can be gathered from the leftover heat of industrial processes, as per Professor Munday.

What Does This Mean for the Future of Solar Energy?

If successful on a commercial scale, this newly discovered technology will mean that solar panels will become functional 24x7, which will enhance the benefits of solar. As of today, a consumer saves up to 80% on electricity bills by generating power during the day, and transmitting surplus energy generated back to the grid through net-metering and then drawing this energy back during the night.

With this new technology, there is a likely possibility that solar energy will become the primary source of energy, and may help consumers save close to 100% on electricity bills.

MYSUN’s Take:

While the development of these night sky solar panels is still at a very nascent stage, the fact that the prototype developed so far is already capable of generating 50 watts of electricity per square meter is very interesting. The potential of solar energy as a primary source of power for the world was never in question at all. But, something like this could potentially improve the interest manifold. This innovation seeks to break the limitation and is on its way towards unleashing the potential of solar even further. We can’t wait to see how the development proceeds further.

Success stories of savings from solar, like this one in Times of India are becoming more common day by day as large scale Corporates, Industries and Institutes become aware of the immense potential. To be able to save Lakhs of Rupees every year and then inject it back into the business for growth is a dream of every business owner.

The best part is, going solar will help you consistently save for a period of next 25 years. With a little maintenance regularly performed, your solar system will be a cash cow on your rooftop as you make use of space, that was lying idle. Geographically, India is perfectly placed to receive 300+ sunny days helping improve the yield. Chandigarh, the capital city of Punjab and Haryana has fantastic solar potential aided by some very positive solar policies.

How will Businesses in Chandigarh Profit with Solar?

Chandigarh is a hub of both small and large scale businesses. They tend to have a high monthly power requirement. To fulfil this requirement with sole dependence on the electricity grid, they pay Lakhs every month. However going solar can help businesses save a huge fraction of this money in fact, sometimes as much as 80% of the expenses on power every month as shown by numerous solar projects commissioned by MYSUN in India.

Chandigarh has a thriving economy and also a tremendous solar generation potential. As aforementioned, with more than 300 sunny days that the city experiences, going solar is an undoubtedly financially rewarding decision for businesses of all sizes and scope; be it from the IT, manufacturing, electronics, pharmaceuticals, machine tools or plastic industry of the city.

How much will your Business Save with Solar in Chandigarh and How?

When you solarize your business, the power generated through the solar system becomes the primary source of power for your business. Therefore, during the day when your solar system generates enough electricity to fulfil your business’s power requirements, your business saves the electricity tariffs that it would pay to the DISCOM, i.e around INR 7.5 - the approximate electricity tariff for the commercial and industrial category in Chandigarh. If your solar system is connected to the grid, any excess energy generated by the solar system can be transferred to the grid, via Net Metering, against the solar tariff which is at around INR 3.6 for Commercial and Industrial category in the city.

With this process, your business can reduce a major portion of its monthly electricity bill. You can get a quick estimation of your solar savings by running the MYSUN Solar Calculator.

Estimated Solar Savings of an Industry in Chandigarh with 10 Lakh Monthly Power bill

How can you Go Solar in Chandigarh with MYSUN? The Benefits You can avail.

MYSUN is the largest online rooftop solar platform in India and has made the solar journey easy for hundreds of MSMEs and SMEs across the country. With MYSUN’s end to end solar solutions ranging from Solar System Designing, Solar System Installation, Solar Financing and Solar System Service and Maintenance; businesses get answers to all their solar needs under one roof. Moreover, with the plethora of information about solar available on MYSUN’s online platform www.itsmysun.com, such as Solar FAQs, Solar Blog, and Solar Policies, businesses have an opportunity to research in-depth and make an informed decision, before going solar.

To install a solar system with MYSUN in Chandigarh or its adjoining cities like Mohali, Patiala, Panchkula, Ambala, Zirakpur, Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar, Manimajra or Rupnagar, get in touch with our solar advisors by calling us on +91 8448380218 or writing to us at [email protected]. Our solar advisors will guide you through your solar journey seamlessly.

“We are excited to have started reaping the benefits of solar energy and expect to significantly reduce our monthly electricity bills. With this well-engineered and premium quality solar system installed by MYSUN, we are sure to save more than Rs 7 crores over the next 25 years just on our electricity costs. And it makes us proud to make our contribution to a cleaner environment.” - Rajesh Chadha - Director, Update Prints.

The financial viability of solar has been tried, tested and experienced by businesses across the globe. And the above statement from MYSUN’s reputed client, Mr Rajesh Chadha - the business owner of a leading Label Printing company in Gurgaon, reinstates this belief. Going solar benefited the company to improve its profits and it is no surprise that they have opted to go solar again, enhancing the overall capacity and therefore savings.

Let’s evaluate the scenario once again.

Power Requirement & Expenses of the Company Before Going Solar

Being in the business of large scale label printing, electricity expenses make for a sizable expense for the organization. Most of the company’s daily power requirement was fulfilled by drawing electricity from the grid. The average monthly units consumed by the company stood somewhere around 41,884 units, for which, the company incurred expenses of around INR 3 Lakh every month and close to INR 36 lakhs a year.

After Solar - Big Savings with MYSUN

The company decided to install a 231 kWp solar plant custom-designed by MYSUN to cater to the specific power requirements of the company in the premise of saving Lakhs. Post commissioning of the plant, the company was able to bring its power bill down from an average of INR 3 Lakh per month to about INR 2 Lakh per month. The decision to invest in solar, aided with MYSUN’s immaculate engineering and diligent service, paid off for the company, as they saved around INR 10~12 Lakhs during the first year of its solar journey.

Savings on Monthly Power Bills After Installing the First Solar System

After Solar - The Company Installs its Second Rooftop Solar System

Having experienced the financial viability of solar first hand, the management of the company decided to enhance its solar capacity by installing a second solar system of 119 kWp size. With this addition, the company has now increased its solar saving potential from approx. INR 1 lakh per month to approx INR 1.55 lakh per month. Thanks to the expanded solar capacity, the company is now eyeing at saving around 15 crores in the next 25 years of its solar journey.

Savings on Monthly Power Bills After Installing the Second Solar System

Solarize your Business and Save Crores Just like Rajesh Chadha in Gurgaon

The results from solarizing, as presented by the above case-study, shows the savings potential of hundreds of commercial and industrial enterprises based out of Gurgaon, Manesar, Panipat, Sonipat, Karnal, and other industrial hubs in Haryana. In fact, why just Haryana, throughout India. Going solar today is a strategic investment decision for businesses around the country, and is a risk-free option which fulfils businesses’ indispensable need for power with an assured Return on Investment.

MYSUN, India’s largest online rooftop solar platform, is proud to be able to partner with MSMEs and SMSEs across the nation to facilitate their solar transition with a range of holistic solar solutions such as Solar Engineering and Designing, Solar Installation, Operation and Maintenance and Solar Financing.

Just before the budget announcement, January ended with some good news for MSMEs who are planning to go solar in Gujarat’s Manufacturing sector. The Micro, Small and Medium Manufacturing Enterprises in the state can now install solar systems above their sanctioned load. The Gujarat solar policy, which earlier had a capping of 50% of the sanctioned load on MSMEs installing rooftop solar, was removed after much consideration including a public redressal. The removal, however, comes with a catch. Let's take a look at it along with the other amendments announced by the Gujarat Electricity Regulatory Commission (GERC) on 23rd January 2020, below:

The Good:

1. The commission has revoked the capping of 50% for manufacturing enterprises falling under the MSME segment, which earlier prevented MSME Manufacturers in the state from installing rooftop solar systems more than 50% of the sanctioned load.
2. Similar to the MSME Manufactures of the state, the limitation on the solar system size has also been removed for the residential consumers in the state, which earlier stopped them from installing a system above the sanctioned load.
3. The capping of the cumulative capacity of solar PV systems allowed under a particular distribution transformer has been given relaxation in the amendments. The capacity has now been increased to a transformer’s full capacity over the earlier limitation of 65% of the total capacity.

The Bad:

1. Even though the commission, in its amendment, has removed the installable solar system size capping for MSME Manufacturers, the commission has not included other industries in it. The prevalent capping of 50% of sanction load will continue to be effective in other MSME industries in the state.
2. The rate at which the surplus energy generated from the solar system is transferred to the DISCOM via net-metering has now been reduced to INR 1.50 ~1.75 per unit from INR 6.5 per unit for all MSMEs including manufacturers. This change will have a severe impact on the benefits of net-metering for consumers in the category impacting their savings from solar.
3. The removal of the installable capacity cap for the manufacturing industry in the MSME segment has been made subject to a 15 minutes settlement mechanism. Under this, for the enterprises installing a rooftop solar system above 50% of the sanctioned load, the energy accounting will be carried out on 15 minutes time block basis instead of a monthly basis. So, solar generation during non-operational days or non-operational hours within a day, when there is less or no consumption, would be credited at 1.5~2-0 Rs/unit instead of 6.5 Rs/unit(the earlier solar tariff), thereby cutting down on solar project Return on Investment and increasing Payback period.
4. The rate of transferring surplus energy to the DISCOM has also been reduced for residential consumers in the state to INR 2.25 per unit, thereby will affect their savings as well.

MYSUN Take -

The amendment released by the commission is no doubt ambivalent in nature. While on one hand, the commission has omitted the capping on the installing capacity for manufacturing category, on the other hand, it has brought no relaxation to MSMEs falling in other categories. The reduction of solar tariff from the earlier equivalent to electricity tariff has further diminished benefits an MSME or a residential consumer can avail by going solar. Amendments with conditions as such are set to slow the acceptance of a clean source of energy that solar is. The provisions made do seem to make efforts to increase the capacity of solar energy in the state but then holds the potential back with many restraints.

In what was the longest Union Budget speech in Parliamentary history, there were a number of key announcements in the form of major tax reforms, budget allocations across categories, and a promise of a simplified GST scheme. Amidst all the lukewarm reaction surrounding the income tax reforms, there were some key announcements concerning the renewable energy sector.

In an effort to boost energy generation and the use of renewable energy, the government has expanded the ‘PM Kusum Scheme’ to 20 lac farmers by setting up grid-connected solar farms on barren lands making ‘Annadata an Urjadata’. Carrying out these institutional changes should help reduce the dependence on thermal and other non-renewable resources, and in-turn boost the dependability on renewable energy sources and increase agricultural earnings. The Finance Minister also announced the plans to set up solar power plant on lands parallel to railway tracks that belong to the Government in a bid to increase the installed capacity.

The financial stress that DISCOMs have been facing in the past year has been a major detriment to the industry. The initiative announced by the government to push smart-metering and urging state and union territories to replace and adopt pre-paid smart meters in the next three years, is a good way to encourage DISCOMs to provide better services at competitive prices. The Government admitted to the stress that the DISCOMs are facing and assured to work with the DISCOMs on the same, this may also lead to relaxing the sudden changes to policies in key aspects like Net Metering.

The announcement of the allocation of Rs. 22,000 Crore to the power and renewable energy sectors is all well and good, but the question remains as to where and how will these funds be utilised? Furthermore, finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman announced that Rs. 4,400 Crore will be allocated to climate change management, as air pollution and climate change have only become a greater public health concern in the past year, assuring the Government's commitment to the Paris Agreement.

Amidst all of these revelations, there was little to no mention about the custom duties on imports, and it remains to be seen how the government plans to deal with this issue though there are reports of a 20% Basic Custom Duty on Solar Cell & Module Imports in addition to the safeguard duty. These may lead to price fluctuation.

Update: As per the latest media reports, the 20% custom duty on solar cells and panels has been removed with immediate effect.

The budget also had a very heavy emphasis on MSMEs. It was announced that a new logistics policy will be unveiled soon to make India’s MSME sector more competitive. This scheme should play a crucial role in boosting the country’s dwindling economy and help in the ease of doing business. On the flip-side, the concession in corporate tax for power companies will definitely not benefit many businesses.

And lastly, in regards to the most talked-about issue i.e. the income tax rebate on personal income; its application over time will reveal the benefits and the drawbacks of the new slabs proposed, and how it will be received by the public and the industrial circles.

Conclusion

The longest Budget speech, may already have impacted, for the worse, the health of the FM and the markets, but it did little to encourage people from investing in solar. There is still a lot left to be desired for the solar and renewable industry, as it remains to be seen how the Government will utilize the allocated funds for the industry given the heavy debt that the industry already finds itself in. Thankfully, there are no new subsidies announced and the announcement of a directive to close old Thermal plants may work in the favour of renewables, a lot will depend on the utilisation of the set budget to the power and renewable sector. The concessional tax rate for electrical generation companies and long term reforms are encouraging and we hope that it will ultimately boost the post sector keeping renewables at the heart of out.

Recently the state of Maharashtra was infamously in the news for its attempt to roll back the net-metering facility for large-scale consumers in the state. The dust had barely settled and now there is another proposal by the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) which seeks to levy additional grid support charges for net-metering on rooftop solar consumers with system size above 10 kW.

The Charges as Stated in the Proposal

For rooftop solar consumers, under net metering or net billing arrangement, MSEDCL has proposed to charge an additional of Rs 4.46/kWh to Rs 8.66/kWh for residential customers, Rs 5.06/kWh to Rs 8.76/kWh for commercial customers and Rs 3.60 to Rs 4.08/kWh for Industrial customers.

For rooftop solar consumers, not opting for net metering or net billing arrangement, the DISCOM has also petitioned to impose heavy additional fixed/demand charges.

The details can be found on https://www.merc.gov.in/

Reasons for the Proposed Charges - As per the DISCOM

The DISCOM has stated that the charges are to avert the adverse effect of the net-metering facility, which increases the infrastructure and operational costs as a result of the reduced demand for grid power.

1. As per the MSEDCL, the under-recovery of infrastructure cost that the DISCOM has to incur in order to sustain and support the net metering mechanism passes the burden on the remaining non-solar consumers. The cost should, therefore, be shared with the rooftop solar customers who are availing net-metering which is enabling them to profit from solar.
2. LT/HT Commercial & Industrial customers form a major chunk of MSEDCL revenue. With them adopting solar, the demand for power from these segments is at a considerable decline.
3. The self-sufficient nature of solar systems reduces power demands during the day but increases the demand considerably during the night. Hence, even though the DISCOM has to limit thermal generation for half a day they have to keep the network and generators ready to meet the demand in the night. This obligates the DISCOM to pay a fixed cost to generators, which is an unrecovered expense at DISCOM's end which they have petitioned to pass on to the solar customers.

MYSUN’s Take - What will be the Impact on Consumers if the Proposal is Accepted?

MERC, in its draft policy issued in December, proposed to withdraw net-metering from Commercial and Industrial consumers. This was followed by very strong criticism from MYSUN and other stakeholders of the industry and was later retracted in January when MERC issued the final policy.

We at MYSUN believe that the proposal presented by MSEDCL, just like the earlier MERC draft, is not in alignment with the country’s or the state’s solar vision. Maharashtra aims to achieve 12 GW of solar power capacity by the year 2022. Such proposals, if accepted & appreciated, will discourage SMEs/MSMEs, other Commercial, Industrial and even residential customers from considering solar, and will put a complete stop & ignorance to the state’s solar goals. Add unfavorable policies to a sector that is already grappling with several issues, not limited to GST and quickly changing global landscape including an Anti-Dumping duty, this surely is not a good news.

We have written at length about how industries in Haryana are saving lakhs on electricity bills with rooftop solar, and how solar energy has been becoming more affordable in the state of Haryana. In order to push India closer to the ambitious 100GW installed solar capacity target, the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission (HERC) has issued an updated version of its regulations for rooftop solar grid-interactive systems to include net-metering facilities and provisions.

The Haryana solar policy changes by the HERC comes as a reaction to the petition filed by HAREDA (Haryana Renewable Energy Development Agency) on the HERC 2014 Net Metering Regulations; seeking amendments in the policy in order for the state to meet its targets as per the ambitious solar targets set by the Government.

The Key Points from the HAREDA Petition included:

• Consumers should be allowed to sell excess generated power back to the utilities, with net-metering provisions
• Distribution transformers should be allowed up to 100% of its particular distribution transformer capacity for rooftop solar systems
• Consumers should be allowed to set-up solar projects higher than the sanctioned load if they have space and capacity to do so
• Open access consumers looking to set-up rooftop solar projects in their premises should be allowed to use net-metering facilities
• Banking facilities for grid-connected rooftop solar power systems
• Ability to carry forward excess energy generated through the solar system; from one billing cycle to the next, and even to the next financial year
• Exemption of wheeling and cross-subsidy charges for consumers under net-metering

The New Updates Included in Solar Net metering Policy in Haryana

In response, the HERC has issued an updated draft of regulations addressing the points raised by this petition. The following are the key changes/additions made to the policy in the state of Haryana:

• Consumers across all categories including residential, commercial and industrial are now allowed to set-up solar projects with a maximum capacity of 2 MW. However, this comes with the condition - solar projects within the range of 1 to 2 MW must have 25% battery storage that should be able to store and deliver energy for 2 hours.
• The distribution capacity of transformers have been increased to 50% and 30% for LT and HT consumers respectively, up from the earlier 30% and 15% transformer capacity that had been given to LT and HT consumers
• The DISCOMs will continue to provide net-metering arrangements to eligible consumers on a non-discriminatory and a first come first serve basis, as long as the total capacity of rooftop solar systems does not exceed 500 MW, up from the figure of 200 MW
• Rooftop solar systems commissioned under these regulations, whether self-owned or third-party-owned, will be exempted from all wheeling, cross-subsidy, transmission, cross-subsidy, transmission, and distribution, and banking charges and surcharges

Apart from the above conditions, the policy will not grant Open Access consumers the facility of net-metering. Furthermore, the excess energy generated by consumers can be carried forward from one billing cycle to the next, however, the policy does not allow for the excess energy to be carried over to the next financial year.

MYSUN’s take:

The updated solar net-metering policy changes by the HERC have mostly addressed the points brought up in the 2014 HAREDA petition, with the exception of net-metering for Open Access consumers. This is a step in the right direction for the state of Haryana, as this should help encourage the adoption of rooftop solar energy and help increase solar installations in the state. It goes without saying, that the stakeholders will have to be brought to paces with these new changes and the implementation will have to be done quickly to make the most of the policy changes. With that being said, there will need to be similar positive changes to solar net-metering policies across the country, in order to streamline and speed up the adoption of solar energy and meet the Government’s 2022 targets.

Interesting ways the world is using solar energy is a series we run on MYSUN, where we bring to our readers some of the most interesting use cases of solar energy. From boats to airplanes to robots, we have seen some very interesting applications of solar energy. However, one vertical that seems to be adapting clean electrical energy faster than most is the automobile sector. Taking the sector to a new height, Hyundai, the South Korean giants in the automobile space has announced a car with a solar system integrated rooftop.

Image source: Techstartups

The New Sonata Solar Hybrid car launched in South Korea will be the first car to bring the first generation technology to the market. The car will feature a structure of silicon solar panels mounted on the rooftop which potentially could charge the battery of the car in the range of 30-60 per cent depending upon the weather conditions of the day. This is good news for those who leave their cars in the outdoors as about six hours of charging will give more than a thousand kilometres extra every year.

Hyundai is reportedly saying that the technology used in the New Sonata Solar Hybrid is the first generation technology and R&D is ongoing for two other types of rooftop systems namely: the second-generation semi-transparent solar roof system, and the third-generation solar-lid on the vehicle’s body. While the former will cater to cars with IC engines, the latter will be mounted on the sunroof of cars.

The solar system on these Hyundai cars will work similarly to how solar Hybrid Rooftop works, where you have a panel of solar cells that will convert light to electricity and a controller, which will convert this electricity to an appropriate usable voltage and store it in the battery of the car. Other than providing the additional kilometers, this kind of system will obviously prove to be a winner for the green tech and environment, saving a ton of CO₂.

You will see the new Sonata with a Rooftop Solar Panel on roads in South Korea soon and eventually in North America. However, for European and Rest of the Asian market, it may be a while before we see this car on the road.

MYSUN’s Take: At MYSUN, we love everything solar and this is definitely a very practical and useful utilization of solar power. The real-life challenges, like the maintenance, efficiency, and durability, etc will only be answered when the vehicle becomes mainstream, but Hyundai may just have given the automobile industry a very interesting concept to work with. Who knows, we may at some stage of time, have a car that is purely powered by a solar panel. Intriguing indeed.