Keyur Rakholiya Open Access in India is the right of eligible consumers to buy electricity from a generator or supplier of their choice using the transmission and distribution network, introduced by the Electricity Act, 2003. The Green Energy Open Access Rules, 2022 lowered the threshold for renewable power to 100 kW, letting more commercial and industrial users buy off-site solar.
Key Takeaways
- Open Access = direct power procurement framework for large consumers.
- Typical threshold > 1 MW connected load.
- Solar Open Access locks in low tariffs from third-party generators.
- Wheeling + banking + cross-subsidy charges apply.
- State-specific rules; varies significantly across India.
How Open Access Works
A consumer who qualifies for Open Access does not need to be physically wired to the generator. Instead, the generator injects power into the shared grid at one point (often a remote solar or wind plant connected at the CTU / STU transmission level, or the local 33/11 kV network for smaller projects), and the consumer draws an equivalent amount at another point through their existing DISCOM connection.
The DISCOM effectively “wheels” that power across its wires and levies wheeling charges, cross-subsidy surcharges, and, where the consumer’s draw and the generator’s output don’t match hour to hour, banking charges for the mismatch.
Because the consumer is bypassing the DISCOM’s retail tariff and instead paying a negotiated PPA rate to the generator plus these regulatory charges, the commercial case for Open Access solar depends on how the resulting landed cost compares to the prevailing retail tariff in that state.
Each State Electricity Regulatory Commission (an SERC, such as the GERC in Gujarat) sets its own connectivity threshold, wheeling and banking charge structure, and approval process, which is why the same C&I load can find Open Access highly attractive in one state and largely unworkable in another.
Related Reading
Open Access sits alongside net metering and RESCO/PPA structures as one of the ways large Indian consumers reduce their solar-adjusted power bill, and the eligibility, wheeling, and banking rules described above are exactly what shape how fast a project clears interconnection.
For teams tracking how these regulatory timelines play out state by state, Solar Permits India: State-Wise Processing Times 2026 breaks down DISCOM approval and net-metering timelines across major states, useful context when comparing an Open Access route against a rooftop net-metered alternative.
If your project also needs the underlying interconnection and structural paperwork sorted out once an Open Access connection is approved, our MW-scale project management consultancy covers that coordination end to end.
For state-by-state rules, see the India solar open access 2026 state guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
3 commonly searched questions about Open Access (India).
Why do companies use Open Access for solar?
What charges apply to Open Access power?
How is Open Access different from net metering?
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