India Hit a Record 3 GW of Open-Access Solar in Q2 2026: What It Signals for C&I Buyers

The short answer

India added a record 3 GW of open-access solar capacity in Q2 2026, the highest quarterly addition on record, bringing cumulative open-access solar to 36 GW by the end of June 2026, according to Mercom India's Q2 and 1H 2026 India Solar Open Access Market Report. First-half 2026 additions reached nearly 6 GW, up 42% year on year, with Rajasthan accounting for about 25% of the quarterly total. For C&I buyers in North India, the record is not just a headline: it confirms that off-site procurement (third-party PPA, captive, group-captive) is scaling fast enough to be a real alternative to on-site rooftop solar, and that Rajasthan is the supply-side centre of gravity for the North-India market. The right question is no longer whether open access is viable, but which procurement route fits a given load profile, roof availability and risk appetite.

This article unpacks the Q2 2026 numbers, what drove them, and how a North-India industrial buyer should weigh open access against rooftop today.

What the Q2 2026 record actually says

Mercom India's report, covered by pv magazine on 24 August 2026, sets out the figures.

• 3 GW added in Q2 2026 - the highest quarterly addition on record for Indian open-access solar.
• 36 GW cumulative installed open-access solar at the end of June 2026.
• Nearly 6 GW in 1H 2026, up 42% year on year from about 4 GW in 1H 2025.
• 10% quarter-on-quarter growth in Q2.
• Rajasthan: ~25% of Q2 additions, the single largest contributor.
• Cumulative state shares: Karnataka 21%, Rajasthan 16%, Maharashtra 16%; the top five states account for 77% of cumulative capacity.

The concentration matters. Open access is not spreading evenly; it is deepening in states with strong industrial electricity demand and mature open-access frameworks. Rajasthan's rise as both a supply hub and a 25%-of-Q2 contributor is the most relevant data point for a North-India buyer, because the same transmission corridor that carries Rajasthan power to Gujarat and Maharashtra also serves Haryana, Delhi-NCR and western UP.

What drove the record

Mercom India attributes the 1H 2026 surge to a pull-forward effect ahead of two regulatory deadlines.

ISTS charge waiver phase-out

Developers accelerated commissioning ahead of the phased reduction of the interstate transmission system (ISTS) charge waiver. Projects that locked in connectivity before the waiver narrowed captured lower transmission costs, so the pipeline that would have commissioned later in 2026 and 2027 was brought forward into 1H.

ALMM List-II sourcing rules

The second pull-forward was the original deadline for the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) List-II cell-sourcing requirement on open-access projects. Developers advanced procurement and commissioning to clear the deadline. MNRE subsequently deferred the ALMM List-II requirement for open-access and net-metering projects until 31 December 2026, but the extension came after the original deadline had passed, by which time much of the pipeline had already been commissioned. So the deferral did not reverse the front-loading; it simply cleared the way for the remaining pipeline to continue without ALMM-II cell constraints through end-2026.

Underlying C&I demand is genuine

Beyond the deadline effects, Mercom India's managing director Priya Sanjay noted that the record installations and a large pipeline demonstrate the strength of underlying demand from commercial and industrial consumers. The opportunity remains significant, she said, but growth will increasingly depend on states providing predictable regulations and developers delivering projects at tariffs that continue to offer meaningful savings to consumers. In other words, the demand is structural, not just a regulatory arbitrage.

Open access vs rooftop: how a North-India buyer should think about it

The Q2 record does not mean open access is universally better than rooftop. It means both are now mature enough that the choice should be made on facility-specific economics, not on a default assumption.

Where rooftop wins

• You have usable roof or ground space sized to a meaningful share of your load.
• You want the asset on your balance sheet for accelerated depreciation or tax planning.
• Your discom's net-metering or net-billing framework is favourable and your sanctioned load can absorb the generation.
• You want zero wheeling and banking friction - on-site generation has no open-access charges, no banking settlement, no transmission loss.
• You need the saving to be immune to grid-curtailment - behind-the-meter rooftop is consumed before it hits the grid.

Where open access wins

• Your roof is too small, leased, or structurally limited relative to your consumption.
• You want to buy power, not own a plant - a third-party PPA or group-captive structure avoids capex and EPC risk.
• Your load is large and stable enough that a dedicated off-site project can be sized to it.
• You are in a state with an established open-access framework - Rajasthan, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu are the mature markets.
• You want to decouple generation from your site - useful for multi-site buyers who want a single contracted volume rather than many small roofs.

The hybrid case many North-India buyers land on

For a factory in Haryana, Delhi-NCR or western UP, a common pattern is: rooftop on the owned facility up to the roof's capacity, then a group-captive or third-party PPA for the residual load served from a Rajasthan or neighbouring-state project. This captures the on-site benefits (balance-sheet asset, no wheeling) for the easy portion and uses open access for the portion rooftop cannot reach. The Q2 2026 record shows the open-access leg of that hybrid is now available at real scale.

What to watch next

Three things will shape whether the Q3 and Q4 2026 open-access additions stay at record levels.

1. The 31 December 2026 ALMM List-II deadline. Projects that commission after that date must use ALMM-listed cells. Developers will again push to commission ahead of it, so expect another Q4 pull-forward, then a reset in early 2027 as cell-sourcing costs step up.
2. State open-access regulation stability. Mercom flagged rising project costs, transmission constraints, and changing banking and open-access regulations as pressures on project economics. A buyer signing a PPA today should stress-test the wheeling and banking assumptions in the contract against the current state order, not a prior one.
3. Rajasthan's supply concentration. With 25% of Q2 additions and 16% of cumulative capacity, Rajasthan is both an opportunity and a concentration risk. Buyers procuring from Rajasthan projects should confirm evacuation infrastructure and grid-connectivity status, since curtailment risk rises with concentration.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is open-access solar?

Open-access solar lets a commercial or industrial consumer buy electricity from an off-site solar project through the transmission and distribution network, instead of only from the local discom. Power is typically supplied under a third-party power purchase agreement (PPA) or a captive or group-captive arrangement, with economics determined by state open-access regulations, grid charges, banking provisions and applicable surcharges.

How much open-access solar did India add in Q2 2026?

India added a record 3 GW of open-access solar in Q2 2026, the highest quarterly addition on record, taking cumulative capacity to 36 GW. First-half 2026 additions reached nearly 6 GW, up 42% year on year.

Which state led open-access solar additions in Q2 2026?

Rajasthan accounted for about 25% of Q2 2026 open-access solar additions. Karnataka led cumulative capacity with a 21% share, followed by Rajasthan and Maharashtra at 16% each.

Is open-access solar better than rooftop solar for industry?

Neither is universally better. Rooftop wins when you have usable roof space, want a balance-sheet asset, and want to avoid wheeling and banking charges. Open access wins when your roof is too small, you want to buy power rather than own a plant, or your load is large and stable. Many North-India buyers use a hybrid: rooftop for the on-site portion and a group-captive or third-party PPA for the residual.

What is the ALMM List-II deadline for open-access solar?

MNRE deferred the ALMM List-II cell-sourcing requirement for open-access and net-metering projects until 31 December 2026. Projects commissioned on or before that date are exempt from the cell requirement; projects commissioning after it must use ALMM-listed cells. This is expected to trigger another commissioning pull-forward in Q4 2026.

Sources

• pv magazine Global, 24 August 2026: India adds 3 GW of open-access solar in Q2.
• Mercom India, Q2 and 1H 2026 India Solar Open Access Market Report (as cited in pv magazine).
• MNRE Office Memorandum on ALMM List-II deferral for net-metering and open-access projects to 31 December 2026.

For the framework that governs off-site procurement, see our Green Energy Open Access Rules 2022 guide and our India open-access state comparison. For the rooftop alternative, see our open-access vs rooftop decision framing and our Rajasthan open-access charges guide. For the ALMM cell-sourcing deadline that is shaping the Q4 2026 pipeline, see our ALMM List-II exemption analysis.