1 MW Solar Plant Cost in India: 2026 Breakdown

Direct answer

For rooftop CAPEX, a 1 MW solar plant works out to about Rs 2.2 crore ex-GST as an indicative upper reference: Sun Wave Technologies' reference pricing is Rs 23,000/kW at 100 kW and Rs 22,000/kW at 500 kW for qualifying rooftop projects, and a 1 MW rooftop quote is priced at or below the 500 kW rate once the site survey fixes the engineering scope. In the Delhi-NCR/UP belt a 1 MW plant generates 14.2-15.2 lakh units a year, which at industrial tariffs of Rs 8-10 per unit saves roughly Rs 1.1-1.5 crore a year, a simple payback of about 1.4-1.9 years on that reference if every unit is self-consumed. Ground-mount and open-access plants are a different cost structure (land, evacuation, transmission) and are not priced here.

TL;DR: 1 MW rooftop reference: at or below Rs 22,000/kW, so about Rs 2.2 crore ex-GST (indicative; final after survey) | 14.2-15.2 lakh units/year (Delhi-NCR/UP) | Rs 1.1-1.5 crore annual savings at Rs 8-10/unit | about 1.2 lakh units and Rs 9.6-12 lakh saved per month | simple payback ~1.4-1.9 years, ~1.3-1.8 years with 40% accelerated depreciation | area: ~80,000 sq ft of roof.

Last verified: 27 October 2026.

A 1 MW plant is the scale at which industrial solar stops being a bill-reduction measure and becomes a power asset: it covers the full daytime load of most two- and three-shift factories and changes how your finance team models the investment. This guide covers what drives the cost, what the plant earns and where a rooftop project differs from ground-mount or open-access.

How 1 MW rooftop pricing works on the reference ladder

Sun Wave's reference is scale-based: Rs 23,000 per kW at 100 kW and Rs 22,000 per kW at 500 kW for qualifying CAPEX rooftop projects, ex-GST, with intermediate capacities priced progressively between the two points. Applying the 500 kW rate to 1,000 kW gives the working figure:

What moves a 1 MW rooftop quote above that reference:

For the smaller size bands with fixed reference rates, see the 100 kW system cost guide and the commercial solar cost guide. To get a priced proposal for your roof, use the Faridabad industrial solar page.

Ground-mount and open-access plants are different

The Rs 2.2 crore figure is for rooftop CAPEX only. Ground-mount plants add land, site development, fencing and evacuation or transmission infrastructure, and open-access plants add network and wheeling arrangements. Sun Wave does not publish reference pricing for those, so treat any single Rs/MW number for them as third-party and project-specific. One regulatory data point: CTUIL's benchmark for grid-connectivity approvals from 1 September 2026 is Rs 3.5 crore per MW for utility-scale solar (Rs 6 crore/MW wind, Rs 0.80 crore/MWh BESS). It is a financial-closure scrutiny benchmark for large grid-connected projects, not a rooftop price and not a Sun Wave price (SauRo Energy, Sep 2026).

Cost breakdown: where the money goes

A 2025 techno-economic study of a 1 MW Indian industrial plant split capex roughly as follows (a study of a different project, so use the shares to compare quotes line by line rather than to price your plant):

(Source: IJFMR techno-economic study, Aug 2025; component shares corroborated by Qbits Energy capex glossary, Jul 2026.) At a market module price of about Rs 14.2/Wp ex-works (JMK, April 2026), the module line alone is about Rs 14,200/kW, so check the module SKU and price basis in any bid. For module-level pricing, see our solar module price tracker and per-watt price guide.

1 MW solar plant income per month

Buyers searching for 1 MW economics usually frame it as monthly income. For a self-consuming industrial host, the plant's monthly "income" is the avoided grid purchase:

Seasonality is real, with summer months above average and monsoon months below, so model the year rather than the peak month. If you sell power instead of self-consuming (RESCO host, group captive or third-party sale), monthly income is the PPA rate times delivered units, net of wheeling and surcharges; see our RESCO/OPEX model guide and third-party sale vs group captive comparison.

Rooftop vs ground-mount at 1 MW

• Rooftop: needs about 80,000 sq ft (7,400-7,500 sqm) of shade-free industrial roof; structure and roof-condition works govern the survey. Region context in our UP industrial solar guide.
• Ground-mount: needs 4-5 acres (up to ~6 with single-axis trackers); land development, fencing and evacuation are the added scope items and sit outside Sun Wave's rooftop reference.

Area norms in detail are in our rooftop area per kW/MW guide.

How much power does 1 MW produce?

At a capacity utilisation factor of 18-20%, 1 MW generates 15.7-17.5 lakh units per year nationally; in the Delhi-NCR/UP belt, realistic yields are 14.2-15.2 lakh units per MW per year (1,420-1,520 kWh per kWp). City-wise yields are tabulated in our units generated per kW guide for North India.

Payback, IRR and running costs

The payback arithmetic on the indicative Rs 2.2 crore ex-GST rooftop reference, using Delhi-NCR/UP yields and assuming every unit generated displaces a grid unit:

• Reading the table: these figures are before O&M (about Rs 2-4 lakh a year) and before GST. They are best-case for a factory with full daytime self-consumption and a high tariff. Lower self-consumption, a lower blended tariff or a quote above the reference lengthens payback in proportion, so rebuild the table with your own bills.
• With tax depreciation: 40% Year-1 accelerated depreciation is a tax shield of roughly Rs 22 lakh on Rs 2.2 crore for a company in the 25.17% bracket, bringing payback to about 1.3-1.8 years (methodology in our accelerated depreciation guide, AD vs 115BAA analysis and IRR calculation methodology).
• O&M: budget about 1-2% of capex per year for cleaning cycles, monitoring, preventive electrical checks and an inverter replacement reserve in later years. Details in our solar O&M guide and panel cleaning schedule guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the cost of a 1 MW solar plant in India in 2026?

For rooftop CAPEX, about Rs 2.2 crore ex-GST as an indicative upper reference (1,000 kW at Rs 22,000/kW), based on Sun Wave's reference of Rs 23,000/kW at 100 kW and Rs 22,000/kW at 500 kW, with the final price fixed after a site survey. Ground-mount and open-access plants add land, evacuation and transmission costs and are quoted separately. The CTUIL grid-approval benchmark of Rs 3.5 crore per MW from 1 September 2026 applies to utility-scale projects, not rooftops.

How much is a 1 MW solar plant's income per month?

In the Delhi-NCR/UP belt a 1 MW plant generates about 1.2 lakh units a month on average, worth roughly Rs 9.6-12 lakh per month in avoided grid purchases at tariffs of Rs 8-10 per unit. If you sell the power under a PPA instead, monthly income is the PPA rate times delivered units, net of wheeling and surcharges.

How many acres does a 1 MW solar plant need?

4-5 acres for a ground-mounted plant (up to ~6 acres with trackers). On a roof, 1 MW needs about 80,000 sq ft of usable industrial roofing.

How many units does 1 MW generate per year?

15.7-17.5 lakh units nationally at 18-20% CUF; 14.2-15.2 lakh units in the Delhi-NCR/UP belt. Multiply by your HT tariff to estimate annual savings.

What is the payback period for a 1 MW rooftop plant?

On the indicative Rs 2.2 crore ex-GST reference, a factory that self-consumes all 14.2-15.2 lakh units at Rs 8-10 per unit pays back in roughly 1.4-1.9 years before O&M, and about 1.3-1.8 years once 40% accelerated depreciation is claimed. A quote above the reference, partial self-consumption or a lower tariff lengthens this.

Is any subsidy available for a 1 MW industrial solar plant?

No central capital subsidy applies to commercial and industrial solar; PM Surya Ghar is residential-only. The tax-side benefits (40% accelerated depreciation, 5% GST on solar devices, input credit) do the work instead; see our commercial solar subsidy reality check.

What is the per-unit cost of solar at 1 MW scale?

On the Rs 22,000/kW reference, our estimate is about Rs 2.0-2.3 per kWh levelised over 25 years (10-12% discount rate, 1,450 kWh/kWp first-year yield, 0.5% annual degradation, O&M at 1.5% of capex). That compares with industrial HT tariffs of Rs 7.95-10.50/kWh across North India, the spread behind the short paybacks above. A quote above the reference raises it proportionally.

Should I build 1 MW on my roof or split across sites?

If a single roof holds 80,000+ sq ft of usable area and your daytime load absorbs the generation, one 1 MW plant is simplest. If roofs are scattered, multiple 100-500 kW plants each sit on the reference ladder at Rs 22,000-23,000/kW and keep self-consumption high; see our multi-site procurement strategy guide.

Sources

• Sun Wave Technologies reference pricing for qualifying CAPEX rooftop projects: Faridabad industrial solar page and Kolkata industrial solar page (Rs 23,000/kW at 100 kW, Rs 22,000/kW at 500 kW, ex-GST, verified 27 October 2026). The 1 MW figure is our arithmetic on that reference.
• CTUIL advisory on benchmark project costs for grid connectivity, effective 1 September 2026: SauRo Energy coverage.
• IJFMR techno-economic study of a 1 MW industrial solar plant, August 2025: DOI.
• Qbits Energy capex glossary, July 2026: component share corroboration.
• JMK Research Monthly RE Update, April 2026: module price of Rs 14.2/Wp (TOPCon, ex-works).
• Income Tax Act Section 32(1)(iia): accelerated depreciation provisions.