CERC Adopts ₹2.42-2.54/kWh Tariffs for 400 MW of SECI Solar

India's Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) adopted tariffs of ₹2.54 per kWh for 50 MW and ₹2.42 per kWh for 350 MW of solar, 400 MW in total, in an order dated Nov. 2, 2026 (Petition No. 200/AT/2026).

The petition came from Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) and covers two project companies of Azure Power India: Azure Solar Private Limited (50 MW at ₹2.54) and Azure Power Fifty-Two Private Limited (350 MW at ₹2.42). Mercom India, which reported the adoption on Nov. 2, converts the rates to about $0.0268 and $0.0255 per kWh, roughly 2.7 and 2.5 US cents. The order itself gives rupees only.

What the Order Adopts

Tata Steel Limited, the distribution licensee for Jamshedpur, signed a power sale agreement (PSA) for the 50 MW on Oct. 17, 2025. West Bengal State Electricity Distribution Company signed one for the 350 MW on Jan. 9, 2026. SECI then signed power purchase agreements (PPAs) with the Azure companies on Jan. 2 and Feb. 3, 2026. SolarQuarter reported on Aug. 20 that Jharkhand's regulator had approved the Tata Steel purchase.

Each buyer also pays SECI a trading margin of ₹0.07 per kWh, which puts the energy-plus-margin cost at ₹2.61 and ₹2.49 per kWh by our arithmetic. CERC said the margin stands if the distribution companies agreed to it, but is limited to ₹0.02 if SECI gives the generators no escrow or irrevocable letter of credit.

Why ₹2.42 Is Not a 2026 Price

The rates trace to an e-reverse auction on Nov. 22, 2019, under a scheme that ties solar plants to building solar manufacturing at a 1:4 ratio. Azure Power and Adani Green won capacity at ₹2.92 per kWh, against a ceiling of ₹2.93. The winners then cut the tariff on their own: to ₹2.54 for the first package of capacity (undertaking of July 15, 2021) and to ₹2.42 for the rest (Nov. 3, 2021). The bid documents set 25-year PPAs. Read the figure as a 2019-21 contract price; the order carries no current cost data.

For US readers, LevelTen Energy's Q3 North American index put the Core-Markets P25 solar PPA price at $64.23 per MWh, or about 6.4 US cents per kWh, as Voltgrid reported. That is about 2.5 times Mercom's conversion of ₹2.42. The two measure different things (an offer-price index against a contracted tariff, in different markets), so treat the gap as direction only.

How It Compares With the October Battery Tender

A week earlier, CERC adopted ₹6.27-6.28 per kWh for SECI's 1,200 MW battery peak tender, which supplies energy in the evening. That is about 2.6 times the ₹2.42 solar rate. The order does not mention storage for these 400 MW, so the gap is a rough guide to what it costs in India's contracts to move energy into the evening. The sources give no blended price.

What Is Not Settled Yet

CERC has now adopted 8,900 MW (Apr. 2, 2022), 334 MW (Nov. 5, 2023) and 400 MW of the 12,000 MW awarded, by the order's own account. Our sum leaves 2,366 MW without an adopted tariff. At a June 11 hearing, SECI said it expected to sign a PSA for 250 MW with Punjab's PSPCL once the state regulator approves. CERC kept this order to 400 MW and SECI did not press the request, so any new capacity needs a further petition. Mercom tags Adani in its report, but the order names only Azure's project companies.