The Tamil Nadu Power Distribution Corporation Limited has set a target to cover 40,000 homes under the PM Surya Ghar initiative, which incentivises residential rooftop solar installations.

A senior TNPDCL official in Coimbatore said nearly 9,000 households across Coimbatore, Tiruppur and The Nilgiris have already installed rooftop solar systems under the scheme. Of these, almost 6,700 homes are located in Coimbatore district alone.

At a recent meeting with solar system vendors, TNPDCL shared details of residential consumers with bimonthly electricity consumption exceeding 500 units. There are around 212,000 such consumers across the region, the official said, indicating significant potential for rooftop solar adoption.

The utility aims to enable 40,000 consumers to switch to solar energy by the end of the next financial year. TNPDCL now installs bidirectional meters for all new electricity service connections, which can be programmed to support rooftop solar systems when consumers opt for solar power.

To accelerate adoption, TNPDCL is conducting awareness campaigns for residential consumers and organising facilitation camps with banks to help households access financing for solar installations.

Separately, TNPDCL has received 132 applications—largely from oil marketing companies—for setting up electric vehicle charging stations across Coimbatore, Tiruppur and the Nilgiris districts. Of these, 71 charging stations are already operational, primarily along highways, at restaurants and petrol stations.