According to Tarun Kapoor, Joint Secretary in Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) the government is planning to roll out large megawatt size solar power projects in the order of 500 mw and above. The government wants to give a boost to its efforts to bring down the cost of solar power in India, he added. Several states have already rolled out mega-sized solar power projects, its needs to be done at central level too, he added.

The Ministry has tendered projects of 50 mw size through National Solar Mission, though several states have either commissioned or executing solar power projects of larger size to meet their escalating demand of power. Maharashtra's state-owned generation company Mahagenco recently commissioned a 125-mw solar power photovoltaic project, the largest ever in India. Welspun Energy has recently established a 130-mw solar power plant under Madhya Pradesh's solar power programme.

The Ministry is also hoping to bring down the cost of solar power with this effort, said Kapoor. Cost of solar power dropped significantly during the first phase of the National Solar Mission. It saw bids as low as Rs 6 per mw. In the upcoming phase, the Ministry is hoping to bring the cost of solar power down to Rs 5.50.