PM Surya Ghar vendor-consumer agreement explained: the 5-year O&M obligation EPCs sign up for

The PM Surya Ghar vendor consumer agreement is the contract you sign with every homeowner. It sets what you install, what you charge, and what you owe for the next five years. Get this right and disputes are easy to settle. Skip it, and a single unhappy customer can put your empanelment at risk.

What the PM Surya Ghar vendor consumer agreement is

The PM Surya Ghar vendor consumer agreement is a written contract between the empanelled installer (you, the vendor) and the homeowner (the consumer). It records what both sides agreed before any panel goes on the roof. The National Portal and the MNRE scheme documents reference a standard model agreement for this purpose.

This is not just a formality. The agreement is the single document that proves what you promised and what the customer accepted. When the work is done, it sets your duties for years afterward. When something goes wrong, it is the first paper anyone reads.

Vendor and consumer, not vendor and government

The agreement is between you and the customer. The DISCOM and MNRE are not parties to it. But the scheme still shapes it, because the model draft, the subsidy rules and your empanelment all sit behind the deal. The customer chose you from the portal, so the scheme rules apply on top of your contract.

The model / Annexure 2 draft agreement

The scheme documents reference a model draft agreement, often called Annexure 2, that gives both sides a ready template. It lists the standard clauses so a homeowner is not left guessing and a vendor is not making up terms. You can use it as-is or build your own contract on top of it.

Verify this: Confirm the current Annexure 2 model agreement and the 5-year O&M / warranty clause against the latest MNRE guidelines PDF before you use it. MNRE revises these clauses, and the annexure number or the O&M period can change. Treat the figures on this page as a guide, not the final word.

Why a standard draft exists

A model draft levels the field. Homeowners are usually buying solar once in their life, so they cannot judge a fair contract. The standard draft makes sure the basics — price, warranty and the five-year O&M — are spelled out the same way for everyone. That builds trust in the scheme and cuts down on disputes.

The 5-year O&M obligation you sign up for

The biggest ongoing duty in the agreement is the five-year O&M obligation — free operations and maintenance for five years after the system is commissioned (verify the current period against MNRE guidelines). This is a long commitment, and many new EPCs underprice it because they only think about the install.

What the 5-year O&M covers

O&M means keeping the system working as promised. Over the five years, the obligation typically covers:

• Free maintenance and repair — fixing faults that are not the customer's fault, at no extra charge.
• Service visits — periodic checks, cleaning guidance and basic upkeep so the system keeps generating.
• Performance support — acting when the system under-generates against the agreed level.
• Workmanship warranty — covering your own installation work, like mounts, wiring and waterproofing.

Module and inverter warranties are separate

Your O&M duty sits alongside the manufacturer warranties. Panels often carry long product and performance warranties, and inverters carry their own. You pass those through to the customer in the contract. But the five-year O&M and the workmanship warranty are yours — you cannot hand them to the maker. Price the labour, travel and spares into your quote.

Clause-by-clause: what each section must cover

A good agreement is more than a price and a signature. Each clause has a job. The table below breaks down what every section should state and why it matters to you as the EPC. Use it as a checklist when you read the model draft or draft your own.

Caption: Clause-by-clause guide to the vendor-consumer agreement, mapped to EPC risk. Source: MNRE PM Surya Ghar model draft / Annexure 2 — verify the current version, as clauses get revised. SuryaHub can generate and store this agreement for you (the platform is pre-revenue, so we show no faked screenshots here), but the table above is fully usable for free on its own.

How the agreement protects both parties

The agreement protects both sides by writing things down before the work starts. The customer knows the system size, the brands, the price they pay after subsidy, and how long they are covered. You know what you owe and, just as important, what you do not owe.

It is the first document in a dispute

When a complaint reaches a DISCOM or the grievance system, the signed agreement is the first thing checked. If the customer claims you promised a bigger system, the contract settles it. If they say the O&M was never offered, the clause proves it was. A clear, signed agreement turns a messy argument into a simple paper check.

No agreement means you lose by default

Without a signed contract, every dispute becomes your word against the customer's. In a consumer-friendly process, that usually goes badly for the vendor. The grievance and escalation path moves fast, and a missing agreement leaves you with nothing to stand on.

How it links to PBG, blacklisting and ratings

The agreement does not sit on its own — it feeds into the scheme's enforcement tools. Poor O&M under the agreement leads to complaints. Complaints lower your ratings. Bad ratings and repeated complaints can lead to blacklisting by the DISCOM. And blacklisting can forfeit your Performance Bank Guarantee.

The chain you want to avoid

Picture the path: you skip a service visit, the system under-generates, the customer files a complaint, your rating drops, the DISCOM acts. The PBG is ₹2.5 lakh per state, or ₹25 lakh all-India through REC Limited, with a five-year validity — and a blacklisting can take it. Honouring the five-year O&M is the cheapest insurance you can buy against that chain.

Empanelment is per-DISCOM, so reputation is local

Because empanelment is per-DISCOM and not portable, your standing is built in each state separately. A clean record under your agreements protects the empanelment you worked to get. Poor O&M in one DISCOM area can cost you that whole market.

Practical advice for EPC owners

The agreement only protects you if you handle it well. A few simple habits make all the difference.

• Keep a signed copy — get the customer's signature and store the contract safely. An unsigned draft is not a contract.
• Attach the annexures — add the bill of materials (BOM) and the module and inverter datasheets so the brands are locked in writing.
• Get clear customer sign-off — have the customer initial the scope, the price and the O&M clause so there is no doubt later.
• Match the quote — the contract figures must match your customer quotation; gaps create disputes.
• Price the O&M in — build five years of service cost into your margin and pricing from the start.
• Log the handover — pair the agreement with a proper handover and sign-off pack when the job closes.

Treat the agreement as a living record, not a filed form. The day a complaint lands is the day you will be glad you kept a clean, signed copy with the annexures attached.

How SuryaHub helps with the agreement and O&M

The hard part of the agreement is not signing it — it is honouring the five-year O&M without dropping a visit. SuryaHub's AMC and service module is built for exactly this: it can generate and store the vendor-consumer agreement, attach the BOM and datasheets, and turn the five-year O&M duty into scheduled service tickets and tracked warranties. You can also run the whole job on project management from quote to handover. SuryaHub is pre-revenue; the only real pilots are Suryantra Energy and RGESPL, and any AI features are on the roadmap, not live. Always verify a generated agreement against the latest official MNRE draft.

Related guides

Frequently asked questions

Sources & references

The model agreement, the Annexure 2 draft and the O&M/warranty clause come from primary government sources. Clauses get revised, so always confirm the current version against the latest MNRE guidelines PDF and the National Portal before you sign or use any template.

• National Portal for PM Surya Ghar ↗

  References the model vendor-consumer agreement and the consumer process.

• Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) ↗

  Scheme guidelines, the Annexure 2 model draft and the O&M/warranty clause.

• REC Limited ↗

  National registering authority; PBG rules tied to vendor conduct.