MGVCL net-meter process for rooftop solar in central Gujarat

If the customer's bill says MGVCL, the file runs through the national PM Surya Ghar portal and an MGVCL sub-division. MGVCL's home page counts 2,18,781 rooftop systems installed in its area as of November 2025. This post covers what MGVCL asks for, what it charges, two MNRE notes from 2026 that its solar page carries, and one sizing question: is a fourth kW worth it? Every figure comes from a DISCOM, regulator or government document; where one is not confirmed, we say so.

Who this is for

Madhya Gujarat Vij Company Ltd (MGVCL) took over the Gujarat Electricity Board's central distribution zone in 2005 (MGVCL), and its registered office is in Vadodara (company profile). Its contact page lists five circle offices: Anand, Baroda City, Baroda (O&M), Godhra and Nadiad. It is one of the four state DISCOMs on one GERC tariff schedule, with PGVCL, UGVCL and DGVCL.

What MGVCL's solar page carries

MGVCL's solar rooftop page keeps the PM Surya Ghar paperwork in one place: GUVNL's letters on charges, documents and firm-quotation conditions, MNRE's memorandum on documents, MGVCL's provisional agreement, meter specifications and a meter supplier list, and two MNRE notes from 2026, covered below. It also lists nodal officers for PM Surya Ghar by circle, sub-division and division at three levels, and asks applicants to go to L1, then L2, then L3, not straight to L3.

The steps and the legal timelines

Our MGVCL net-meter guide lists the nine PM Surya Ghar stages with Hindi labels. In short, from clause 6 of the MNRE scheme guidelines: register on pmsuryaghar.gov.in with the bill's consumer number and pick a registered vendor; install and upload geo-tagged photos; MGVCL fits the meter, inspects, and approves, returns or rejects the file; the subsidy follows within 15 days of approval. The guide marks MGVCL's office details and typical days as not yet verified.

The Electricity (Rights of Consumers) Amendment Rules, 2024 set the maximums: feasibility within 15 days or presumed feasible; up to 10 kW, a complete application deemed accepted, with MGVCL carrying out any load enhancement; commissioning within 15 days of the installation certificate (rules 11(7), 11(7A) and 11(9)). A delay without just cause costs at least ₹500 a day, paid to the consumer (2020 rules, rule 11(12)).

Documents and the agreement

MNRE's memorandum of 11 January 2024 limits the documents to one electricity bill from the last six months at feasibility, then the project completion report, a photograph and the consumer-vendor agreement, and tells DISCOMs to seek nothing else. GUVNL's letter of 28 March 2024 adds that the DISCOM may take the net-metering agreement before fitting the meter, with a copy of the invoice to establish who owns the system (GUVNL letter).

GERC's fifth amendment (Gujarat Gazette, 3 November 2025) then removed the separate written agreement for PM Surya Ghar systems. The agreement starts on the commissioning date, and the DISCOM confirms that date and the surplus rate in writing (GERC Notification No. 10 of 2025, clause 3). MGVCL's provisional agreement still says ₹300 stamp paper. If a sub-division asks for it, show the notification.

Fees and the meter

GUVNL's letter of 15 February 2024 to the four state DISCOMs, which MGVCL posts on its solar page, sets the PM Surya Ghar charges (GUVNL letter). For 1 to 6 kW: net or generation meter ₹1,014, meter box ₹318, meter testing ₹118 and connectivity ₹1,500, a total of ₹2,950. Above 6 kW and up to 25 kW: ₹13,410. Confirm it on MGVCL's firm quotation.

The consumer may buy the meter, which the DISCOM tests and installs (2020 rules, rule 11(10)). Strengthening lines and transformers for a system up to 6 kW is charged to the DISCOM's revenue requirement, not the customer (GERC Notification No. 13 of 2024, Regulation 5.1).

Two MNRE notes from 2026

A little more panel than inverter

MNRE's advisory of 25 March 2026 says some DISCOMs were returning applications over a marginal gap between panel (DC) and inverter (AC) capacity, such as 3.24 kW of panels on a 3 kW inverter. It asks DISCOMs to allow up to 10% more DC capacity than applied for, provided the inverter's AC capacity does not exceed the sanctioned load or the AC capacity the regulations allow. Its example: for 5 kW with 540 Wp modules, 9 modules (4.86 kW) or 10 (5.4 kW), with the inverter capped at 5 kW.

GUVNL's firm-quotation conditions of 28 March 2024 allow plus or minus 5% of the registered capacity (condition 5). If a design sits between 5% and 10% over, ask the sub-division in writing which rule it applies.

Cells on ALMM List-II from 1 June 2026

MNRE's memorandum of 15 June 2026 confirms that ALMM List-II, the approved list for solar cells, applies to net-metering projects commissioned from 1 June 2026. It gave a one-month window only for systems fully installed before that date, and says this does not extend the 1 June date. For new jobs, ask the module supplier for proof that the cells are on List-II, alongside the DCR certificate.

How the bill works after the net-meter

MGVCL's provisional agreement (clause 7) settles each billing cycle. Solar units are set off against units consumed, not load, and fixed charges stay. Net imports are billed at the tariff. Net exports are bought at ₹2.25 a unit for the first five years, then at 75% of GUVNL's average non-park solar tariff for the previous six months. The credit goes against later bills, and a year-end balance over ₹100 is paid on request.

Worked example: a 500-unit home in Vadodara, 3 kW or 4 kW?

The urban tariff for FY 2026-27, post-paid, per unit each month (GERC tariff schedule, page 3): first 50 units ₹3.05, next 50 ₹3.50, next 150 ₹4.15, above 250 ₹5.20. The fixed charge (₹15 to ₹70 by connected load) stays either way.

The bill today, energy only: 50 × ₹3.05 + 50 × ₹3.50 + 150 × ₹4.15 + 250 × ₹5.20 = ₹2,250.

What each solar unit is worth. Net units are billed from the first slab up, so solar takes the top units first: the first 250 solar units save ₹5.20 each, the next 150 ₹4.15, the next 50 ₹3.50 and the last 50 ₹3.05. A unit beyond the home's use earns ₹2.25.

What each size costs. At MNRE's benchmark (₹50,000 per kW for the first 2 kW, ₹45,000 per kW after that), with GST added at the blended 8.9% because the guidelines do not say whether the benchmark includes it:

• 3 kW: ₹1,45,000 + ₹12,905 GST − ₹78,000 subsidy = ₹79,905.
• 4 kW: ₹1,90,000 + ₹16,910 GST − ₹78,000 subsidy = ₹1,28,910.

The subsidy stops at 3 kW, so the fourth kW costs the customer the full ₹49,005. Both sizes sit in GUVNL's 1 to 6 kW band, so the net-meter charge is ₹2,950 either way.

What the fourth kW has to do. To pay back ₹49,005 in five years it must save about ₹817 a month: about 157 units a month off the ₹5.20 slab, or 197 if the first three kW already cover the top 250 units and it works on the ₹4.15 slab. Any of its units the home exports earn only ₹2.25.

We have not confirmed how many units a kW makes on a Vadodara roof. Compare these numbers with the monthly generation of your own installations nearby before you sell the fourth kW.

What goes wrong on central Gujarat files

• Name and roof. GUVNL's firm-quotation conditions require any name change at the sub-division before the rooftop application, and a no-objection certificate from all owners for a common roof (GUVNL letter of 28 March 2024, conditions 1 and 2). On a shared terrace, collect the certificate at the survey.
• Old module stock. ALMM List-II applies at commissioning from 1 June 2026, so check the cells on any modules bought before then.
• The file sits. MNRE's notice of 24 August 2026 advises vendors not to hold applications over 60 days without a valid reason. Our tools turn amber at 45 days, our own early warning.

Frequently asked questions

Is the subsidy different in MGVCL areas?

No. ₹30,000 per kW for the first 2 kW and ₹18,000 for the third, capped at ₹78,000 (MNRE guidelines, effective 13 February 2024). Gujarat adds no state top-up.

Can the panels be rated above the inverter?

Up to 10% more DC capacity under MNRE's advisory of 25 March 2026, with the inverter within the allowed AC limit. If the sub-division says otherwise, get it in writing.

The MGVCL steps with Hindi labels are in our net-meter guide. The bill-to-kW tool sizes a system from the bill, and the application risk checker counts the days on any open file.