Srinagar, Sep 10: Can solar power really work efficiently in a cold place like Kashmir? The question has often been raised whenever rooftop solar is discussed in Jammu and Kashmir, with the Valley’s harsh winters, snowfall and reduced daylight frequently cited as arguments against the technology.
But the science of photovoltaic generation tells a different story. Solar panels need sunlight, not heat. In fact, high temperatures can reduce the efficiency of photovoltaic modules, while lower temperatures generally favour their performance.
The 25 degrees Celsius figure commonly associated with solar panels is not an ideal outdoor temperature. It is the cell temperature used under Standard Test Conditions to rate photovoltaic modules.
Most modern solar panels have a negative temperature coefficient, meaning their power output falls as their cell temperature rises. Depending on the technology, modules can lose around 0.25 to 0.40 percent of their peak power for every one-degree Celsius increase in cell temperature.
A bright, cold day can therefore provide favourable conditions for solar generation. On a hot summer afternoon, a panel can become considerably hotter than the surrounding air and experience a decline in output.
The real challenge for Kashmir during winter is different. Shorter days, a lower angle of the sun, cloud cover and snow accumulation reduce solar generation.
This seasonal decline coincides with the period when electricity demand in the Valley rises sharply because of heating requirements. That makes solar unsuitable as a standalone source of electricity throughout the year.
But it does not make it unsuitable for Kashmir. Photovoltaic installations operate successfully in several cold regions of the world, including northern Europe and parts of North America. The experience of these regions demonstrates that low temperature itself is not a barrier to photovoltaic generation.
The more important considerations are the availability of sunlight, snow cover, system design and seasonal variations.
Kashmir, therefore, needs to design solar systems for its climate rather than dismiss the technology because of its winters. Panel orientation and tilt can help facilitate snow shedding, while mounting structures need to be designed to withstand local snow loads.
Regular maintenance can minimise the impact of accumulated snow. In suitable locations, bifacial panels may also derive some benefit from light reflected by snow-covered surfaces. None of this means that solar can solve Kashmir’s winter electricity requirements on its own.
It cannot generate electricity at night, and prolonged periods of cloud or snow will reduce output. Large-scale battery storage sufficient to provide complete winter independence from the grid would also come at a substantial cost.
The more realistic objective is energy self-reliance rather than complete energy independence.A household with a suitable roof can seek to generate a significant portion of its annual electricity requirement through rooftop solar while continuing to rely on the grid when generation is insufficient.
The same principle can apply to commercial establishments, institutions and industries. The economics also need to be viewed over the life of the installation rather than simply through its initial price.
An electricity bill is an expense paid every month. A solar installation, by contrast, is an asset that continues to generate electricity for years.
Government subsidies, incentives and financing can reduce the initial investment, while the electricity produced over the system’s operating life can offset future power expenditure. For industry, the opportunity could be even greater.
Factories and industrial units often have large, unobstructed roofs and consume considerable amounts of electricity during daylight hours. Those roofs could therefore be treated as productive assets rather than simply structural surfaces covering machinery.
The same opportunity exists across government offices, schools, hospitals, hotels, warehouses and commercial buildings. Individually, these installations may not appear significant. Collectively, however, thousands of rooftop systems could create a distributed generation network spread across Jammu and Kashmir.
That is an important shift in the way the power system can be viewed. For decades, households and businesses have largely been electricity consumers. Rooftop solar allows them to become producers as well. A home can generate electricity.
So can a factory, a school, a government building or a commercial complex. If deployed at scale, these small systems could collectively add substantial generation capacity without requiring large tracts of additional land.
This is particularly relevant in Jammu and Kashmir, where land has competing residential, agricultural, industrial and environmental uses.
The approach, however, requires coordinated support.
The government needs to maintain a predictable policy framework, provide appropriate incentives, simplify approvals and strengthen distribution infrastructure. Banks and financial institutions can make rooftop solar financing more accessible to households, businesses and industrial units.
Architects and developers can also play a role by designing new buildings with solar-ready roofs, appropriate structural provisions and electrical infrastructure.
Government institutions could lead by example by assessing suitable public buildings for rooftop installations and measuring the potential savings in recurring electricity expenditure.
The industrial sector, meanwhile, needs to look at rooftop solar as an energy-management investment rather than merely an environmental initiative.
For Kashmir, the objective should not be to disconnect every consumer from the grid. Such an approach would be neither practical nor economical in many cases, particularly during winter.
Instead, the aim should be progressive energy self-reliance: generate as much electricity as economically and technically possible locally, while retaining the grid as the balancing and backup system.
The seasonal limitations of solar should also be acknowledged honestly. December and January will produce considerably less electricity than the sunnier months.
Snow can temporarily cover panels, clouds can reduce output and winter nights remain long. But an energy resource should not be judged solely by its weakest months.
The more useful question is how much electricity can be generated during the rest of the year and how that generation can reduce pressure on the wider power system. This is where the potential of rooftop solar becomes significant.
Jammu and Kashmir does not have to choose between hydropower and solar. It needs both, alongside a reliable grid and, where economically viable, energy storage. Solar can reduce daytime demand from the grid, while hydropower and other sources can continue to provide electricity when solar production is unavailable.
The larger opportunity lies in changing the way people look at the roofs above them. A roof is generally considered part of a building. With solar panels, it becomes an electricity-generating asset.
Before leaving a suitable roof unused, households and businesses should ask how much electricity it could produce. Before dismissing solar because Kashmir is cold, it is worth remembering that photovoltaic systems operate in climates considerably colder than the Valley.
Solar will not illuminate Jammu and Kashmir through every winter night. It does not need to. The relevant question is how much of the electricity presently purchased from the grid can be economically produced from rooftops that already exist.
If thousands of households, factories, institutions and commercial establishments begin answering that question seriously, the cumulative impact could be considerable.
Kashmir’s winter will reduce the amount of sunlight available. It will not make the photovoltaic panel stop working because of the cold. The challenge, ultimately, is not whether the sun can power Kashmir. It is whether Kashmir is prepared to make better use of the sunlight falling on its homes, factories and institutions every day.
