MNRE Clarifies ALMM Rules For Government Solar Projects Under Net Metering And Open Access

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has issued a clarification regarding its Office Memorandum (O.M.) No. 283/59/2024-GRID SOLAR dated 28 July 2025, which deals with the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) for solar PV cells and modules. The clarification addresses queries about how the rules apply to certain Government projects, particularly under Net Metering, Behind-the-Meter, and Open Access mechanisms.

Clause 5 of the original O.M. exempts Government projects where the last date of bid submission is on or before the cut-off date of 31 August 2025 from the requirement of using solar PV cells listed in ALMM List-II. For such projects, ALMM compliance is limited only to the use of solar PV modules listed in ALMM List-I. The cut-off date is set exactly one month after the publication of ALMM List-II for solar PV cells on 31 July 2025. However, Clause 8 of the same O.M. states that Net Metering and Open Access projects commissioned on or after 1 June 2026 must use solar PV cells from ALMM List-II, regardless of their bid submission date.

This apparent contradiction led to questions about whether the exemption based on the last bid submission date would still apply to Government projects under Net Metering, Behind-the-Meter, and Open Access mechanisms if their bids were submitted before the cut-off date.

After examining the issue, MNRE has clarified that Government projects under Net Metering, Behind-the-Meter, or Open Access mechanisms, if awarded through bidding with the last date of bid submission on or before 31 August 2025, will indeed be exempt from the requirement to use solar PV cells listed in ALMM List-II. For these projects, ALMM compliance will be limited to the use of solar PV modules listed in ALMM List-I.

However, the ministry has also made it clear that this exemption will not override any domestic content requirements in schemes, programmes, or other initiatives where it is mandatory to use domestically manufactured solar PV cells and modules. In such cases, there will be no relaxation in the domestic content requirement based on this O.M.

The clarification was issued with the approval of the Secretary, MNRE, to ensure that Government projects have a clear understanding of the compliance requirements under the ALMM framework, especially in cases where the bid submission date falls before the specified cut-off date.