The Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission (RERC) has issued draft amendments to its Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) Regulations, 2023. The proposed Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission (Renewable Purchase Obligation) (First Amendment) Regulations, 2026, aim to revise the structure of renewable obligation categories. They also seek to update the compliance mechanisms in line with the Ministry of Power’s revised renewable consumption framework.
The draft amendments introduce a distributed renewable energy category and define it as electricity generated from renewable energy projects below 10 MW. This includes solar installations under configurations such as net metering, virtual net billing, and behind-the-meter installations, as well as other configurations notified by the central government and covered under the RERC’s regulations. Furthermore, under the draft amendments, distribution licensees, including deemed licensees, are required to fulfil a specified portion of their renewable purchase obligation through such distributed renewable energy projects.
Furthermore, the earlier categories of wind RPO, hydro purchase obligation, and other RPO are proposed to be replaced with four components: wind energy, hydro energy, distributed renewable energy, and other renewable energy under the draft amendments. For distribution companies, the proposed RPO trajectory increases gradually over the coming years. The total renewable energy obligation is proposed at 35.95 per cent in 2026-27, rising to 38.81 per cent in 2027-28, 41.36 per cent in 2028-29, and 43.33 per cent by 2029-30. Within this target, the wind energy obligation would increase from 1.97 per cent in 2026-27 to 3.48 per cent by 2029-30, while the hydro energy obligation would remain around 1.33–1.42 per cent during the period. The distributed renewable energy component would rise from 2.7 per cent in 2026-27 to 4.5 per cent by 2029-30, and the other renewable energy category would increase from 29.94 per cent to 34.02 per cent over the same period. Additionally, stakeholders can submit their comments and suggestions on the draft amendments by March 23, 2026.
