Solar Cost Per Unit (₹/kWh) Calculator

LCOE (Levelised Cost of Energy) is the average price per unit (₹/kWh) of solar electricity over the system's lifetime, accounting for upfront cost, maintenance, inverter replacement, panel degradation, and the time value of money. It's the apples-to-apples way to compare solar with grid tariffs.

For residential rooftop with PM Surya Ghar subsidy: ₹2-4/kWh (one of the lowest in the world). Without subsidy: ₹4-6/kWh. Commercial: ₹4-5/kWh. Compare with UP grid residential tariff of ₹6-9/kWh depending on slab.

Grid tariffs bundle generation + transmission + distribution + DISCOM margins + cross-subsidies. Rooftop solar delivers directly to your meter — no grid costs. Plus solar panels have fallen 85% in price since 2010 while still producing for 25+ years.

Our default calculator is for grid-tied solar (no battery). For hybrid or off-grid systems with batteries, LCOE rises 50-150% (roughly ₹6-9/kWh) because batteries are expensive per kWh delivered. Still usually cheaper than long-run grid tariff.

7% is standard for Indian residential LCOE analysis (matches bank FD returns). Conservative: 5% (ultra-safe view). Aggressive: 10-12% (opportunity cost of equity markets). Higher discount rate gives higher LCOE.

For a given system, LCOE is locked in the day you install. But as grid tariffs rise 4-6% annually, your solar LCOE looks better and better by comparison. Year 1 savings might be 40%; Year 10 savings could be 65%; Year 25 could be 80%.

Yes — plug in each quote's cost and expected generation. The quote with lower LCOE is cheaper per unit over lifetime, even if the upfront number looks higher. Premium panels with 30-year warranty often have lower LCOE than cheaper 20-year panels.

Initial cost minus subsidy, annual O&M (maintenance, cleaning, monitoring), and one inverter replacement in Year 12. Panel replacement is not included — panels routinely outlive 25-year warranty.