Background
Rajasthan Electricity Regulatory Commission notified the RERC (Grid Interactive Distributed Renewable Energy Generating Systems) Regulations, 2021 under the Electricity Act, 2003 to govern grid-connected rooftop and small distributed renewable energy systems commissioned on or after 1 July 2021, superseding the earlier RERC (Connectivity and Net Metering for Rooftop and Small Solar Grid Interactive Systems) Regulations, 2015 for new installations. The Regulations establish the framework for Net Billing and Net Metering arrangements, prescribing eligibility, capacity limits, application and connectivity procedures, metering, technical and safety standards, energy accounting, and applicable charges and exemptions, while allowing existing 2015-Regulations consumers to continue under their subsisting Connection Agreements.
Regulations have since been amended three times. The First Amendment Regulations, 2023 (Rajasthan Gazette, 6 October 2023) raised the Distribution Transformer capacity limit, redefined behind-the-meter capacity by reference to peak AC capacity with deemed drawl for excess generation, raised the Net Billing tariff incentive, introduced AC capacity caps with a lapse rule for excess generation, revised the Net Metering domestic export tariff and net-imported-energy billing slab, and exempted certain RESCO systems from cross-subsidy surcharge. The Second Amendment Regulations, 2024 (Rajasthan Gazette, August 2024) shortened the technical feasibility and commissioning timelines to 15 days each, with deemed feasibility for domestic systems up to 10 kW, and allowed recognised Educational Institutions to temporarily switch from Net Metering to Net Billing. The Third Amendment Regulations, 2025 (Rajasthan Gazette, 3 December 2025) introduced Group Net Metering (GNM) and Virtual Net Metering (VNM) as new arrangements, extended the arrears and capacity conditions to GNM/VNM, added corresponding accounting provisions, and introduced new charge-exemption regulations covering BESS wheeling waivers and a fee waiver linked to a five-lakh-house rooftop solar target – with a further plug-and-play and peer-to-peer trading framework enabled only upon a separate Commission order
Applicability
These Regulations apply to Eligible Consumers of Distribution Licensees in Rajasthan, including domestic, commercial, industrial, HT and LT consumers, installing or proposing to install grid-interactive distributed Renewable Energy systems under Net Billing, Net Metering, Group Net Metering, Virtual Net Metering or P2P Trading arrangements, including behind-the-meter systems operating in parallel with the grid without opting for these arrangements, and plug-and-play solar systems. They also apply to the concerned Distribution Licensees responsible for connectivity, metering, billing and settlement.
Compliance Obligations under the Regulations, 2021 (incorporating amendments made in 2023, 2024 and 2025)
Eligible Consumers must install the RE generating system under Net Billing or Net Metering within permissible technical limits, at the consumer’s premises, interconnecting at the same point and operating safely in parallel with the Distribution Licensee’s network. This applies to systems commissioned on or after 1 July 2021; consumers must terminate an existing Net Metering agreement before shifting to Net Billing, GNM or VNM, and a Net Billing prosumer cannot simultaneously avail GNM or VNM.
Consumers with pending arrears owed to the Distribution Licensee are ineligible for Net Billing, Net Metering, GNM or VNM. Where a billing dispute exists, the consumer may still avail these arrangements pending resolution by depositing the disputed amount with the Licensee under Section 56 of the Electricity Act, 2003.
Electricity sale to consumers is otherwise reserved to Distribution/Trading Licensees or Open Access, but Net Metering, GNM, VNM and Net Billing arrangements through a RESCO-owned RE system are permitted. The Net Metering, GNM, VNM or Net Billing agreement is executed between the Distribution Licensee and the eligible consumer, not the RESCO. Disputes between the consumer and the RESCO under their direct agreement are settled mutually and are not adjudicated by the Commission or the Licensee, which may not disconnect the consumer on that ground.
An Eligible Consumer may lease or rent rooftop space, land or water bodies to a RESCO on a mutual commercial arrangement to set up an RE generating system under Net Billing, Net Metering, GNM or VNM. The RESCO must execute a direct payment agreement with the consumer; no tripartite agreement between the RESCO, consumer and Distribution Licensee is permitted.
The RE generating system capacity at any Eligible Consumer’s premises may not exceed 100% of the consumer’s Sanctioned Load or Contract Demand, consistent with the RERC (Electricity Supply Code and Connected Matters) Regulations, 2021.
RE system capacity must exceed 1 kW under Net Billing, Net Metering, GNM or VNM (subject to the Regulation 7.2 cap) and may go up to 1 MW under these arrangements. Systems above 1 MW are instead governed by the RERC (Terms and Conditions for Tariff Determination from Renewable Energy Sources) Regulations, 2020.
HT (11 kV and above) Consumers may install and connect an RE generating system at their LT Bus Bar System, provided the RE Generation Meter or Net Meter is installed on the HT side of the consumer’s transformer.
An Eligible Consumer may install, enhance or upgrade RE generating systems at different locations within the same premises after following due procedure and intimating the Distribution Licensee, provided the aggregate capacity at the premises stays within the prescribed limits.
Open access under GNM and VNM connections is permitted only for wheeling energy to beneficiary consumers/connections of the same consumer; third-party sale is not allowed under Net Metering, GNM, VNM or Net Billing except via the permitted RESCO model. Charges and losses on GNM/VNM beneficiary consumers apply as specified in Regulation 15.
A consumer proposing an RE system must apply on Annexure II with the prescribed application fee — Rs. 200 (LT single phase), Rs. 500 (LT three phase), Rs. 1,000 (HT 11 kV), Rs. 2,000 (HT 33 kV), Rs. 5,000 (EHT 132 kV and above) — and must compulsorily furnish an e-mail address and mobile number with the application.
The Distribution Licensee must acknowledge and register the application, process applications in order of receipt, and provide an online tracking mechanism. Technical feasibility must ordinarily be assessed within 15 days (deemed feasible if not intimated); domestic-category applications up to 10 kW under Net Metering, GNM or VNM are deemed accepted without a feasibility study. For GNM/VNM, feasibility review takes 15 days for existing connections and 30 days for new connections, with connectivity granted within 30 days of the feasibility outcome. Where feasible, the Licensee must issue a Letter of Approval within 30 days of acknowledging the application.
Where deficiencies are found in the RE system capacity or available transformer loading during the feasibility study, the Distribution Licensee must intimate the applicant within 20 working days of acknowledgement; the applicant must rectify the deficiencies within 15 days of intimation and confirm resolution to the Licensee, failing which the application stands cancelled.
After installing the RE system, the consumer must submit an installation certificate to the Distribution Licensee, which must then complete the connection agreement, meter installation and commissioning within 15 days of submission — reduced from 30 days by the Second Amendment Regulations, 2024.
A consumer has the option — not an obligation — of purchasing the requisite meter for the RE system, which is then tested and installed by the Distribution Licensee.
The Eligible Consumer must install the RE system within 180 days of receiving the Letter of Approval, per the specified standards, or such extended period as the Distribution Licensee agrees. Failure results in automatic cancellation of the approval, requiring a fresh application.
The Distribution Licensee and Eligible Consumer must execute a Connection Agreement for Net Billing, Net Metering, GNM or VNM after connectivity approval but before generation commences, using the model formats at Annexure IV-A (Net Billing) or IV-B (Net Metering/GNM/VNM).
On termination of the Connection Agreement, the Eligible Consumer must forthwith disconnect the RE generating system from the Distribution Licensee’s network.
The RE generating system and allied equipment must conform to the CEA (Technical Standards for Connectivity of Distributed Generating Resources) Regulations, 2013, the CEA (Installation and Operation of Meters) Regulations, 2006, the CEA (Measures relating to Safety and Electric Supply) Regulations, 2010, and the RERC (Electricity Supply Code and Connected Matters) Regulations, 2021.
The consumer must have the equipment installed by the supplier’s representative to confirm satisfactory working; the supplier must pre-test the equipment and provide a test certificate, and applicable-standard tests must confirm the quality of power generated.
The RE generating system’s connectivity level with the grid must comply with the RERC (Electricity Supply Code and Connected Matters) Regulations, 2021, as amended, subject to the capacity limits in Regulation 7.
The consumer is responsible for the safe operation, maintenance and defect rectification of the RE system up to the Interconnection Point, beyond which responsibility shifts to the Distribution Licensee; the Licensee may require rectification of any defect within a reasonable time.
The Eligible Consumer bears sole responsibility for any incident, fatal or otherwise, arising from back-feeding by the RE system when grid supply is off; the Distribution Licensee may disconnect the installation at any time to prevent injury or damage.
An RE system may be installed with or without storage, but any alternate power source — battery, diesel generator or backup power — must be restricted to the consumer’s own network; the consumer must take adequate safety measures to prevent such power from extending to the Distribution Licensee’s LT grid during a grid outage.
Power quality must be verified through tests conducted as per EN 50160 and the Distribution Licensee’s applicable standards.
The RE generating system must be capable of detecting unintended islanding and must carry anti-islanding protection tested to IEC 62116 for grid-connected inverters.
Every RE generating system must have an automatic synchronisation device, though a separate device is unnecessary where synchronisation is inherently built into the inverter.
Where required by the Distribution Licensee for maintenance and safety, the RE system must provide a manually operated isolating switch that: (a) allows visible verification of separation; (b) clearly indicates open/closed position; (c) is accessible to Licensee personnel round the clock without needing the applicant’s clearance; (d) can be locked open; and (e) carries neither load-break rating nor over-current protection.
Before first synchronisation of the RE system with the electricity system, the applicant and the Licensee must agree on protection features and control diagrams.
The inverter must filter harmonics and other distortions before injecting energy into the Licensee’s system, meeting the technical, power-quality and inverter standards at Annexure VI, including IEEE 519 harmonics limits, or as the CEA may specify.
An RE system connected behind the consumer’s meter, operating in parallel with the grid without opting for Net Billing or Net Metering, is allowed only after prior intimation to the Distribution Licensee with all CEA safeguarding measures in place; failure to intimate before installation attracts additional liability at fixed-charge rates for the period of unintimated installation.
The maximum capacity of an individual RE generating system installed behind the consumer’s meter is limited to 100% of the consumer’s Contract Demand.
The peak AC (inverter) capacity of a behind-the-meter RE system may not exceed the Regulation 10.14.2 limit; any excess generation in a 15- or 30-minute block is treated as deemed drawl from the Discom, though installed DC capacity is unrestricted.
The consumer must ensure no energy is injected into the grid from a behind-the-meter RE system; any inadvertent injection is neither paid for nor settled by the Distribution Licensee and attracts a penalty under the applicable Regulations.
Consumers with an existing behind-the-meter Solar Rooftop PV system who had not opted for Net Metering under the 2015 Regulations were required to intimate the Distribution Licensee in the Model Form within three months of notification of these Regulations — by 15 September 2021; failure attracted additional liability at fixed-charge rates on a monthly basis. This is a one-time transitional obligation whose intimation window has since closed.
The Eligible Consumer must give the Distribution Licensee prior intimation, in the prescribed Annexure V form, before installing an RE system behind the consumer’s meter.
The technical and power-quality standards for a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) must conform to Annexure VII of these Regulations or such other standards as the CEA/Ministry of Power may specify.
All meters installed at the RE generating system must comply with the CEA (Installation and Operation of Meters) Regulations, 2006, as amended.
All meters must have Advanced Metering Infrastructure (AMI) capability with an RS-485 (or higher) communication port or other advanced communication facility.
Under Net Billing, the RE generating system must be connected on the Distribution Licensee’s side of the consumer meter.
Net Metering requires a single- or three-phase Net Meter at the interconnection point determined by the Distribution Licensee, with the RE generating system connected on the consumer’s side of the consumer meter.
The Eligible Consumer must install, at own cost, a CEA-compliant RE Generation Meter at the Interconnection Point to measure energy generated by the RE system.
While the Distribution Licensee carries out testing, installation and maintenance of the metering equipment and ensures compliance with applicable standards, the consumer bears the associated costs.
Meters must be installed so as to allow the Distribution Licensee easy access for meter reading.
Meters must be jointly inspected and sealed by representatives of both parties and tested only in their presence, or per the Supply Code, following the metering specifications and placement provisions the Distribution Licensee prescribes.
The consumer must also install, at own cost, an appropriate-class Check Meter for the RE Generation Meter, used for billing and commercial settlement whenever the RE Generation Meter’s readings are unavailable due to defect, failure or burnout.
The consumer must report a defective, failed or burnt meter to the Distribution Licensee in its specified format; the Licensee must then replace the meter as per the Supply Code.
Under Net Billing, where the value of RE generation in a month exceeds the value of the other bill components, the billing credit is carried forward per Regulation 12.5.3; any credit remaining at the end of the Settlement Period must be paid by the Distribution Licensee to the Eligible Consumer by 15 May of the following financial year, and the consumer should monitor that this settlement is effected.
The peak AC (inverter) capacity of a Net Billing RE installation may not exceed the contracted AC capacity; excess generation in a 15- or 30-minute block lapses, though installed DC capacity is unrestricted.
Where a domestic consumer’s exported electricity exceeds imports in a Billing Period, the Distribution Licensee must purchase the excess at the weighted-average tariff of large-scale (5 MW and above) solar projects discovered through the last financial year’s competitive bidding, plus 25% — or the latest available such tariff plus 25% if no bidding occurred — credited in the following billing cycle; this also applies to existing 2015-Regulations Net Metering consumers. For non-domestic consumers, unadjusted surplus at the end of the billing period lapses without payment; PM-KUSUM and similar scheme consumers follow Commission-specified rates; and recognised Educational Institutions on Net Metering may opt into Net Billing for any two months in a financial year on prior intimation.
Where a consumer’s imports exceed exports in a Billing Period, the Distribution Licensee bills the net consumption after adjusting credited units; for Net Metering consumers, the net imported energy is billed at the slab corresponding to total consumption from all sources, including for consumers under the 2015 Regulations.
Under Net Metering, unadjusted net credited units for a domestic consumer at each financial year-end must be purchased by the Distribution Licensee at the Regulation 12.6.1(a) rate and credited within the first month of the following year; the domestic consumer should monitor that this settlement occurs.
The peak AC (inverter) capacity of a Net Metering installation may not exceed the contracted AC capacity; excess generation in a 15- or 30-minute block lapses, with no restriction on installed DC capacity.
An Eligible Consumer may install an RE system under GNM or VNM, available to all consumer categories, within permissible technical limits and operating safely with the grid, including via a RESCO or Utility-Led Aggregator model, with land/rooftop lease arrangements outside the Licensee’s role. Aggregate capacity may not exceed 100% of participating consumers’ cumulative Sanctioned Load/Contract Demand, each individual consumer capped at its own Sanctioned Load/Contract Demand; system capacity must exceed 1 kW and may go up to 1 MW, beyond which the 2020 Tariff Regulations and 2025 Green Energy Open Access Regulations apply, with a 100 kW–1 MW contract-demand consumer able to choose between GNM/VNM and Green Energy Open Access. GNM capacity is further subject to available Distribution Transformer capacity; HT consumers may connect at the LT Bus Bar with the Net Meter on the HT side; capacity enhancement follows the Regulation 7 procedure; applications use the Annexure IV-C form; the Connection Agreement follows Annexure IV-D; and equipment and metering must meet the Regulation 10 and 11 standards, including CEA metering rules.
Under GNM, a participating consumer’s excess exported electricity is first adjusted against the consumption of other service connections per the consumer’s priority list, beginning with the connection where the RE system is located, revisable once a year with two months’ notice; any further excess is purchased at the Regulation 12.6.1(a) rate. For Time-of-Day consumers, injected energy is first offset against the same time block’s import, with any remainder treated as an off-peak credit and settled from lowest to highest tariff block. If the host connection is disconnected, unadjusted credits are paid out at financial year-end after settling dues; where imports exceed exports/allocation, billing follows Regulation 12.6.1(b).
Under VNM, generated energy is credited to each participating consumer’s bill per the procurement ratio in a stamp-paper agreement/MoU filed with the Distribution Licensee, revisable once a year with two months’ notice; the commercial arrangement among participants is mutual, with no Licensee role, and further excess beyond adjustment is purchased at the Regulation 12.6.1(a) rate. Time-of-Day accounting, disconnection settlement, and import-exceeds-export billing follow the same rules as GNM under Regulation 12.6(A).12.
Electricity from a self-owned RE system under Net Metering at the Eligible Consumer’s premises is exempt from banking charges, wheeling charges, cross-subsidy surcharge and additional surcharge.
Electricity generated under Net Billing, Net Metering, GNM or VNM by an Eligible Consumer count toward the Distribution Licensee’s Renewable Purchase Obligation (RPO) in its supply area, except that Net Metering, GNM or VNM generation counts toward RPO only where the Eligible Consumer is not itself an obligated entity.
Electricity from a RESCO-owned RE system under Net Metering is exempt from banking and wheeling charges; cross-subsidy and additional surcharge still apply — at 50% of the open-access rate for LT domestic consumers, or Rs. 1.25/kWh where no Commission rate is fixed — except that no such surcharge applies where the system serves domestic consumers, State Government buildings, local bodies or State public undertakings.
Electricity from a self-owned or RESCO-owned RE system under Net Billing is exempt from banking charges, wheeling charges, cross-subsidy surcharge and additional surcharge.
Electricity generated under GNM or VNM for a domestic-category consumer is exempt from all banking, transmission, wheeling and surcharge-related charges and losses — transmission charges/losses, wheeling charges/losses, cross-subsidy surcharge and additional surcharge.
For non-domestic consumers, electricity from a self-owned RE system under GNM/VNM installed at the consumer’s own premises is exempt from banking, transmission and wheeling charges/losses and both surcharges; if installed elsewhere, the same exemptions apply except wheeling charges/losses, which apply at the relevant voltage level (11 kV rate as default until fixed).
For non-domestic consumers, electricity from a RESCO-owned RE system under GNM/VNM at the consumer’s premises is exempt from banking, transmission and wheeling charges/losses; if installed elsewhere, transmission charges/losses remain exempt but wheeling charges/losses apply at the relevant voltage level. Cross-subsidy and additional surcharge apply at 50% of the open-access rate, or Rs. 1.25/kWh where undetermined, except for Government connections, which are fully exempt from both surcharges.
A BESS installed under GNM/VNM, including RESCO-owned systems, gets a 75% wheeling-charge waiver where storage capacity equals 5% of solar capacity, with a further 1% waiver for each additional 1% of storage capacity up to 30%, and a full 100% wheeling-charge exemption for storage beyond 30% of solar capacity.
Application fee, security deposit, meter testing charges and the requirement to execute a connection agreement are waived for domestic consumers installing plants under Net Metering, GNM or VNM, until the State achieves its target of five lakh rooftop solar houses, or such other target as the State Government specifies.
The Commission may prescribe Parallel Operation Charges on energy generated under Net Metering, GNM or VNM to cover balancing, banking and wheeling costs, net of RPO and other benefits to the Licensee, upon a duly justified petition by the Distribution Licensee; no such charges apply to Net Billing consumers, though charges also apply to behind-the-meter RE systems per Regulation 10.14.5.
Penalty & Consequences
The following penalty provisions apply across the compliance obligations covered in this blog:
Section 142 of the Electricity Act, 2003 — Penalty for Contravention of the Act, Rules, Regulations or Directions
As amended by the Jan Vishwas (Amendment of Provisions) Act, 2026, with effect from 1 June 2026, Section 142 of the Electricity Act, 2003 provides that a contravention of the Act, or of any Rules, Regulations, or directions or orders issued under it, attracts a penalty of not less than Rs. 10,000, extendable up to Rs. 5 lakh, for each contravention. Where the failure continues, an additional penalty of not less than Rs. 1,000, extendable up to Rs. 10,000, applies for each day during which the failure continues.
Regulation 18.1 — Penalty for Failure to Meet Regulatory Requirements
Where the Renewable Energy generating system or the Distribution Licensee, as the case may be, fails to meet the requirements prescribed under these Regulations, it shall be liable to pay a penalty as decided by the Commission from time to time. The Regulations do not fix a quantum for this penalty; verification of any Commission order or guideline specifying the applicable amount is recommended.
Link: https://rerc.rajasthan.gov.in/rerc-user-files/regulations
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