Extract

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), Government of India, has identified solar
cities with the object to supplement renewable energy (RE) with conventional energy in a substantial
way and Coimbatore is one among them. Solar cities aim to reduce their projected energy demand by
10% over the next five years through RE sources and energy efficiency measures. Coimbatore is taken as
the city of inquiry to identify the rooftop and façade potential among residential, commercial, and
industrial (IT) building typologies. A focus group discussion involving stakeholders substantiated that
incentives from the government are a driving factor for the deployment of solar PV. The challenging
factors are the mutual shading of buildings, lack of consumer education, and lack of mandatory
enforcement. From the solar insolation analysis of chosen urban blocks in the residential category,
enough rooftop space is available for RTPV (Rooftop photovoltaics), which alone can offset 238%
common energy(for lights and lifts) and west façade can alone offset 104% of common energy in a G+10
floor apartment in Coimbatore. In a dense commercial setting, with RTPV alone, the offset is from 2%–
23% for air-conditioned shops and 36%–100% for non-air-conditioned shops.RTPV payback period for
mall and IT offices is less than five years.

Keywords: Rooftop PhotoVoltaics (RTPV), Building-integrated Photovoltaics (BIPV), Urban Solar PV
potential

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