How Hybrid Rooftop Solar Is Making Its Own Niche in UP

Shankuntala Mishra is a resident of Swarna Jayanti Vihar in Kanpur. Buoyed by the benefits of solar energy, Mishra installed a 5 kW rooftop solar system for her residence early this year. She said that switching to solar allowed her to cut down her peak summer monthly bills from around Rs 12,000 to an average of Rs 3,500.

However, her rooftop solar system stands out from others in her area. Unlike other rooftop solar users, she can utilise solar power during power outages to run her electrical appliances. Notably, conventional rooftop solar systems stop supplying power to households during power blackouts. But this was not the case for Mishra. 

Mishra can use solar power during outages due to his decision to opt for a hybrid rooftop solar connection instead of the conventional grid-tied inverters. Hybrid rooftop solar connections are emerging as a newer, advanced setup in Uttar Pradesh (UP), which has gained significant impetus, especially in the last two years.

From Individuals to Institutions

“I opted for a hybrid rooftop solar system as power outages are rampant in Kanpur.  This ensured an uninterrupted power supply, besides helping me cut down my power bills by exporting my surplus solar production from my plant to the grid,” she told Saur Energy.

Besides Mishra, several institutions—especially in power-starved regions—have switched to hybrid rooftop solar connections to increase their access to electricity, ranging from government buildings to private ones. Around eight Primary Health Centres (PHCs) or Health & Wellness Centres (HWCs) of the UP government in the Hardoi district, including Barwan, Dalelnagar, and Anangpur, among others, are now using hybrid rooftop solar connections to boost their capability to keep vaccines and essential injections refrigerated—something that would not have been possible without an uninterrupted power supply.

How Hybrid Rooftop Solar Systems Differ

Technically, while a conventional rooftop solar system mainly comprises a set of solar panels, inverters, wires, earthing, and ACDB (Alternating Current Distribution Box) and DCDB (Direct Current Distribution Box), a hybrid rooftop solar setup has some additional requirements. Unlike these conventional setups, hybrid systems require a hybrid solar inverter, which can cut down the flow of solar power into the grid during outages for safety reasons and divert this energy to charge batteries and supply green energy to the households.

Storage (through batteries) is an additional component needed, which can store solar power during outages for use when required. Both these components—hybrid inverters and batteries, either lead-acid or lithium-ion—add to the cost of hybrid rooftop solar, making it slightly more expensive than conventional systems. But despite these challenges, the hybrid rooftop solar market is slowly picking up pace in weak grid areas.

The rising demand for hybrid rooftop systems can also be gauged from the growing number of inverter companies that have started manufacturing or supplying hybrid solar inverters for the Indian market, along with the rise in battery manufacturers to meet this demand.

An Upsurge in Market Demand

In the last two years, several companies like Microtek, Eastman Auto & Power Limited, Solar Yaan, Solis, Sungrow, and Solax Power, among others, have introduced hybrid solar inverters, while Luminous was one of the early adopters. Not only these, but firms like Microtek, are now planning to start manufacturing lithium-ion batteries that can work seamlessly with their hybrid inverters. Eastman is also manufacturing both hybrid inverters and batteries, most of which have started in the last two years.

So why is the manufacturing sector trying to carve out its own space in this emerging technology?

“This is mainly because of two key reasons why we now see so much rush in the Indian solar market to push hybrid rooftop solar systems. One of the key reasons was the allowance of subsidies for hybrid connections under the PM Surya Ghar scheme. This opened up a wide market for this segment. While this was already popular in several countries, in India, it remained a non-starter or existed on a very small scale due to its comparatively higher cost than conventional rooftop systems. The second reason is the reduction in storage costs, mainly global lithium prices, which made storage more affordable,” said Praveen Kumar Jain, Business Head (Solar) at Microtek International, to Saur Energy.

Jain explained the subsidies under PM Surya Ghar and the slashing of imported Lithium cells aided in the cutting down of rooftop solar connections. 

In terms of cost, compared to a conventional grid-tied inverter for a 3 kW rooftop solar system—which costs anywhere between Rs 15,000 and Rs 30,000—hybrid inverters are priced between Rs 35,000 and Rs 80,000, depending on the brand. 

Add to this the additional cost of batteries, which adds around Rs 30,000–Rs 50,000 for a 3kW system. So, despite a consumer getting a cumulative subsidy of Rs 1,08,000 (Rs 78,000 from MNRE and Rs 30,000 from the UP government), while a 3 kW conventional rooftop solar system costs anyway between Rs 1.8–2.3 lakh, the total cost of a hybrid rooftop system can go up to Rs 2.8–3.5 lakh.

Why Is It a Challenge in Rural UP?

Sanchit Garg, an empanelled vendor in UP who installs rooftop solar connections in the state, and also the President of the UP Solar Association, told Saur Energy that the higher cost of hybrid rooftop solar connections is a major hurdle, besides existing challenges in solar growth in such areas.

“In any state, the largest adopters are urban areas. Many vendors are reluctant to operate in rural and weak-grid areas due to lower demand and logistical challenges. In such regions, if you introduce expensive solar solutions, how can you expect them to pick up the market? It is likely to remain confined to only the affluent classes in these areas,” he said.

He also pointed to policy issues that can affect its growth in rural areas, which are best suited for such technologies. “One key issue is financing. Banks are more confident in grid-tied inverter-based rooftop systems as they are more familiar with that model. Loans for hybrid connections are still a challenge. On the other hand, as per banking rules, financial institutions do not give loans to farmers soon after their agricultural loans are waived off, so a section of such farmers is also deprived of financial aid from banks, which could make such systems affordable,” he added. He sees more offtake of this technology in the institutional level. 

Industry experts also validated the viewpoint. Several companies seem to find Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in rural areas a potential market for hybrid rooftop solar connections. Abhishek Dubey, Assistant Vice President at Luminous Technologies, said that in rural areas, Commercial & Industrial (C&I) consumers are becoming the torchbearers of hybrid rooftop solar.

“If you want to see its adoption, we can see many institutions coming forward for such connections to ensure optimal use of solar energy and use it as a key source of power for their trade and daily operations—textile industries, poultry farms, petrol pumps, and educational institutions. Although adoption under PM Surya Ghar could be slower, I can see faster adoption among C&I consumers for this technology,” Dubey told Saur Energy.

Govt’s Support For Hybrid Connections 

UP poses significant opportunities for the rooftop solar market in India as it has earmarked 25 lakh connections under the PM Surya Ghar scheme — around 25% of the Indian government’s total target. Officials at the Uttar Pradesh New and Renewable Energy Development Agency (UPNEDA) said that rooftop solar installations have increased manifold with the focus of the Union and state governments and a series of policy reforms.

Estimates given by UPNEDA indicate that while last year the state was installing around 7,000 rooftop solar connections under PM Surya Ghar in a month, it has now escalated to 30,000 connections per month, opening new avenues for trying emerging technologies like hybrid rooftop solar connections.

Upkari Nath, working with RMI-India and an adviser to UPNEDA, told Saur Energy that most of the rooftop solar connections in UP currently are through conventional rooftop systems, with hybrid inverters taking a very small share for now. However, he said the state government is supporting hybrid connections too.

“Earlier, there was confusion among the discoms on allowing hybrid connections under the PM Surya Ghar scheme. However, first, MNRE issued a clarification on the inclusion of hybrid connections for subsidies under the scheme. UPNEDA also issued a notification in this regard to clear confusion among vendors and discoms,” Nath said.

He also said that increased access to power in primary schools in rural areas and health centres through hybrid connections could boost the quality of services rendered by them. UPNEDA was also one of the few Indian states to issue a tender in 2024 to solarise several government buildings in UP with hybrid rooftop solar connections, ensuring institutional-level solarisation of government buildings to increase their access to power.

Ray of Hope

While many experts working in the field claim that the higher cost of inverters and the additional cost burden of batteries are the main bottlenecks to its growth, manufacturers say that the cost of hybrid rooftop solar products could go down in the future if all goes well.

For example, Kalpesh Gavali, Global Chief Marketing Officer of Eastman, told Saur Energy that the storage devices used in such hybrid connections mainly comprise lithium cells and a Battery Management System (BMS). “Most Indian lithium-ion battery makers are using imported lithium cells and BMS. While India is still largely dependent on imports for lithium cells, localized manufacturing of BMS could bring down the cost of batteries,” Gavali said.

Jain from Microtek added that even in India, some firms are set to start production of lithium cells in the next 2–3 years. He said more adoption, competition among industries, and local innovation could help reduce the higher prices of hybrid rooftop solar systems.

Conclusion 

Hybrid rooftop solar systems are a bridge between on-grid and off-grid solar, particularly suited for weak grid areas like rural or semi-urban regions. They offer significant value during power outages, such as in cyclone-prone areas where power infrastructure can remain defunct for extended periods — even up to a month, as seen during Cyclone Fani in Odisha. These systems also ensure seamless operation of small and medium enterprises when grid power is limited or unavailable, thereby enhancing access to electricity. With stronger policy support, government initiatives promoting institutional adoption, and a likely reduction in overall costs driven by market competitiveness, the demand for hybrid rooftop solar systems is expected to grow significantly.

This story was produced with the support of Internews’ Earth Journalism Network.