ALMM List-II Deadline Pushed Again: What MNRE’s July 18 Order Really Means for Your Pipeline
If you’ve been sitting on a stack of net-metering or open access projects, watching the ALMM List-II clock tick down, you can exhale for now. MNRE just bought the industry another six months.
On 18th July 2026, the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy quietly dropped Office Memorandum No. 283/53/2026-GRID SOLAR, and it’s the kind of order that developers will want pinned to the top of their inbox. In short, the exemption from ALMM List-II for solar PV cells, previously set to lapse on 31st May 2026, has been extended to 31st December 2026 for net-metering and open-access RE projects.
That’s a real, practical extension. Not a policy reversal, not a permanent carve-out, but breathing room that many pipelines badly needed.
Why This Order Exists
Anyone who’s been tracking ALMM knows this space has been a moving target all year. A quick timeline, because the paper trail matters here:
- Dec 2024 / reiterated July 2025: MNRE first laid down the rule that any net-metering or open access project commissioning on or after 1st June 2026 would have to source modules from ALMM List-I and cells from ALMM List-II. No exceptions flagged at the time.
- 25th May 2026: With the deadline a week away, MNRE signalled there’d be no blanket extension, but investments already committed would be protected. Cue a scramble across the industry to figure out exactly what “protected” meant in practice.
- Late May through June 2026: A flurry of follow-up O.M.s tried to patch the gaps, one specifically for rooftop, others tweaking dates. If you were tracking compliance during this window, you know how confusing it got.
- 18th July 2026: This latest order supersedes all of that. Every earlier O.M. referencing ALMM compliance dates is now read in line with this one. One clean deadline, replacing a mess of overlapping ones.
What Actually Changed
Here’s the part that matters for your project timeline: domestic solar cell manufacturing capacity still hasn’t caught up with demand, and MNRE has effectively acknowledged that forcing the June 2026 deadline would have stalled a meaningful chunk of the net-metering and open access pipeline.
So instead of a blanket extension across all solar projects which MNRE has explicitly ruled out the relief is narrow and targeted:
- Who gets it: Net-metering projects and Open Access RE power projects only.
- What’s exempted: Sourcing solar PV cells from ALMM List-II. (ALMM List-I module sourcing requirements aren’t touched by this order.)
- Until when: Projects commissioned on or before 31st December 2026 are covered.
- What happens after: Anything commissioning from 1st January 2027 onward has to comply fully with ALMM List-II no more grace period referenced in this order.
If your project falls outside net-metering or open access say, a utility-scale IPP project this order doesn’t touch you. The “no blanket extension” line in Para 3 is doing a lot of work here, and it’s worth reading twice before assuming you’re covered.
The Real Takeaway for Developers
This isn’t the ministry backing down on domestic manufacturing goals it’s a pressure valve. MNRE says the decision came after “detailed deliberations with various stakeholders of the solar industry,” which, translated, means the industry made its case on cell availability and commissioning timelines, and the ministry listened partially.
Three things worth doing with this news right now:
- Re-check your commissioning date against 31st December 2026, not the old May 2026 line. If your project was going to miss the earlier deadline, it may now clear comfortably but don’t assume; confirm the classification (net-metering / open access) actually applies.
- Don’t treat this as a new baseline. MNRE has now extended this cutoff more than once in a matter of months. Six months is enough time to actually secure ALMM List-II compliant cells — plan sourcing now rather than waiting for the next possible extension.
- Track amendments closely. Para 3 of the order explicitly states that references to superseded O.M.s “in any other O.M.s of MNRE regarding ALMM” are automatically read as amended. If you’re relying on an older circular for compliance guidance, it’s worth re-verifying against this one.
MNRE isn’t walking away from ALMM it’s buying the ecosystem time to get there without stranding half-built projects. For net-metering and open access developers, 31st December 2026 is now the number to plan around. Just don’t bank on another extension after that.
The order is signed by Sanjay G. Karndhar, Scientist-E, MNRE, and issued with the approval of the Hon’ble Minister (New & Renewable Energy).
Reference: Office Memorandum No. 283/53/2026-GRID SOLAR, Ministry of New & Renewable Energy, Government of India, dated 18th July 2026.
About Chirayu Power
Navigating shifting ALMM timelines is exactly the kind of regulatory complexity Chirayu Power Pvt. Ltd. helps its clients manage every day. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Khamgaon, Maharashtra, Chirayu Power has grown into one of India’s most trusted solar EPC companies, with 3,000+ installations completed across 10+ states covering over 150 MW of rooftop and 200 MW of ground-mounted solar capacity.
As an ISO 9001:2015 certified and MNRE-approved channel partner, Chirayu Power delivers end-to-end, turnkey EPC execution from design and engineering to installation, commissioning, and ongoing O&M for industrial, commercial, residential, and utility-scale projects. The company also specializes in open access and RESCO-based solar solutions, backed by IoT-enabled monitoring, in-house civil and electrical teams, and a track record of 100% regulatory compliance.
With regional offices in Nagpur, Pune, Mumbai, and Hyderabad alongside its Maharashtra head office, Chirayu Power stays close to developments like this ALMM order — helping clients plan commissioning timelines, sourcing, and compliance well ahead of every regulatory deadline.
Get in touch:
- Website: www.chirayupower.com
- Phone: +91 9112114440 / +91 7721871188
- Email: sales@chirayupower.com
