Commercial and industrial solar guide for Punjab

1. Know what you pay now

Shops, offices, clinics, schools and similar premises are billed under Non-Residential Supply (NRS), with energy charged from the first unit and no free allowance:

Industrial manufacturing units pay a Punjab Government subsidised energy charge of ₹5.835 per kVAh for FY 2026-27. Solar reduces the energy you buy. It does not reduce the fixed charges on your sanctioned load.

2. Why solar suits a business connection

• There is no free-units line, so every solar unit used on site comes off the bill at your full tariff.
• Most businesses use their power while the sun is up: shops, offices, schools and day-shift factories.
• Tariffs change every year, while a rooftop system fixes the cost of a large share of your power for the life of the panels.

3. Size it to daytime use and the load

1. Collect twelve months of bills. Business use changes with the seasons more than a home’s.
2. Work out how much of your use falls in daylight. Units used as they are made are worth the most.
3. Size the system to that daytime use, capped at the sanctioned load or contract demand.
4. Check the roof: about 100 sq ft of shade-free area per kW. The roof capacity calculator shows what fits.

Export to the grid under net metering is settled at a rate set by PSERC and is worth less than the units you use, so a system much bigger than your daytime use pays back more slowly. Larger systems are designed after a site survey of the roof, the structure and the cable route.

4. Choose the type

• On-grid, for most businesses with a reliable connection. It is the cheapest per kW.
• Hybrid, where power cuts cost money: a clinic, a cold store, a server room. Back up the circuits that matter and leave heavy loads on the grid.
• Off-grid only where there is no reliable connection.

5. Estimate the payback

Payback depends on your tariff, how much of the generation you use on site, and the price. For a first estimate, use the solar calculator with a commercial connection: it uses the FY 2026-27 PSPCL tariff and shows the saving and payback. Generation by location shows how output changes month by month in your town.

6. Finance and tax

A business system is paid for in full, with no subsidy. Business loans and NBFC finance are the usual routes; see five ways to finance solar. Ask your chartered accountant how depreciation on the system applies to you.

7. Compare quotes on the same scope

For a commercial system, ask each installer for the generation estimate and its assumptions, the panel and inverter make and model with datasheets, the structure design, the cable and protection, and the PSPCL paperwork. The 50-point quote checklist covers all of it, and the quote comparison tool puts quotes side by side.

8. Run it well

• Read the inverter and net meter on the same date each month and compare with the estimate.
• Clean the panels on a schedule that suits your dust: more often near roads, industry and fields at harvest.
• Have the earthing and protection checked once a year.

The maintenance and troubleshooting guide lists what to check when generation drops.