TN Budget 2026: Rs 1 lakh solar subsidy, smart meters

The Budget also proposed installing smart meters for all consumers in Chennai and 50 lakh industrial and commercial consumers across the rest of the State.

(L) Finance MInister Marie Wilson in Assembly, (R) Image of rooftop solar used for representative image

Updated on:

06 Aug 2026, 3:05 am

CHENNAI: All electricity consumers in Chennai will be brought under smart metering, while households installing rooftop solar systems will receive subsidies of up to Rs 1 lakh.

Finance Minister Maria Wilson said the Rooftop Solar Subsidy Scheme would be implemented in convergence with the PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana. The State has earmarked Rs 50 crore for the scheme, under which domestic consumers will receive up to Rs 1 lakh to install rooftop solar panels.

TNPDCL sources said households currently receive Rs 78,000 for a 3 kW rooftop solar system under the central scheme. The State will provide an additional Rs 22,000, taking the total subsidy to Rs 1 lakh. Tamil Nadu has so far installed 85,159 rooftop solar systems benefiting 1,00,397 households.

The Budget also proposed installing smart meters for all consumers in Chennai and 50 lakh industrial and commercial consumers across the rest of the State. The Chennai distribution region, including parts of Tiruvallur district, serves about 38.8 lakh consumers.

The move marks a shift from the previous government's plan to install 3.04 crore smart meters across Tamil Nadu in two phases. TNPDCL officials said implementing smart meters across an entire distribution region would enable monthly billing through remote meter readings, eliminating manual meter reading.

To accelerate electric mobility, the government announced that 20,000 public EV charging stations will be set up over the next five years through the public-private partnership (PPP) mode, with Rs 50 crore allocated this financial year. A separate Rs 5 crore subsidy scheme was announced to help Resident Welfare Associations install EV charging facilities in residential complexes.

The Budget also announced the construction of 178 new substations at a cost of Rs 1,543 crore and the phased replacement of 40,000 ageing transformers with an investment of Rs 2,000 crore.

With power demand expected to cross 37,000 MW by 2035-36, the government will introduce a Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) Promotion Policy to attract private investment and position Tamil Nadu as India's BESS hub.