Most Assam tea factories still off solar; NETA seeks energy banking

Around 70% of tea factories in Assam have still not switched to solar power, and the tea industry says a single unimplemented clause in the state's clean energy policy is holding them back, The Sentinel reported on Saturday.

According to the Tea Board of India, Assam has 812 tea factories. Only about 25% of them have installed solar systems so far, the North Eastern Tea Association (NETA) said.

The problem: three idle months

Tea manufacturing in Assam is seasonal. Factories stay shut for nearly three months each winter, when their electricity use drops to almost nothing.

The Assam Power Distribution Company Ltd (APDCL) uses an export-import (EXIM) metering system. That means a factory with solar panels sends its surplus power to the grid during the off-season, but, according to NETA, does not get the economic benefit it should. For a seasonal industry, that weakens the business case for investing in solar.

What the industry is asking for

Tea bodies want APDCL and the state government to put into effect the annual energy banking provision in Clause 6.1.9(b) of the Assam Integrated Clean Energy Policy. Under it, surplus electricity generated in low-use months could be "banked" and set off against what the factory consumes once manufacturing resumes.

A NETA delegation recently met APDCL's managing director to explain the difficulties under the current metering system. NETA said the managing director heard them out, was positive about the proposal and told his office to work out the details. No timeline or formal order has been announced yet.

Why it matters

NETA argues that if energy banking is made operational, nearly every tea factory in the state could adopt solar. That would cut the industry's reliance on grid power at a time when tea producers face tight margins, and help Assam's clean energy targets.

For APDCL, banking means carrying factories' surplus power on its books for months, which is likely to be the main issue in working out the details. The outcome will be watched across the sector, as the state's tea industry is the largest in India and a major industrial power consumer during the plucking season.