Discover the driving forces behind India’s solar module production surge and its journey towards brighter energy horizons.
India is racing toward impressive goals in solar module manufacturing, a crucial part of its renewable energy strategy. The Indian government’s ‘Make in India’ initiative is steering this charge, working strongly to enhance the country’s domestic solar module production capacity. The aim? To reduce dependence on imports and promote the growth of the renewable energy sector.
A significant stride was taken recently as the Finance Ministry organised a gathering with crucial players and banks in the Solar Photovoltaic (PV) area. The objective was to troubleshoot finance-related hurdles encountered by the industry and set the stage for its growth.
What’s Happening?
In the grand scheme of producing solar energy, a key player is called polysilicon. This magical substance takes sunlight and turns it into power. To keep it simple, consider polysilicon a hero in solar panels because it produces energy.
Now, here comes the exciting part: There is one country which dominates the supply chain of polysilicon and solar panel, and that is China. The country has around 80% of the market share at all stages. But guess what? India wants to take a step forward in producing solar modules.
India is determined to establish itself as a key contender in the solar module manufacturing sector, with aspirations to secure a share of the production chain.
This ambition is fueling India’s swift progress in this domain. Impressively, in the fiscal year 2022-23, the country doubled its manufacturing capacity, according to Finshots.
Notably, India’s solar cell and module exports skyrocketed by a staggering 364% compared to the previous financial year. At the same time, India’s ongoing module manufacturing capabilities stand at an impressive 22.4 GW.
Factors Promoting Manufacturing in India
China’s influence has been a driving factor in fostering solar module manufacturing in India. But, a shocking discovery shook things up last year. China was using forced labour from certain groups like Uyghurs and Kazakhs for its renewable energy supply chain. This news made waves all around the world. The region is the source of nearly half of the world’s solar-grade polysilicon. But what’s more important is treating people right.
Because of this, the US started taxing solar modules from China and even banned some of them. Companies began to look for options other than China.
China’s mistake turned into a big chance for India to zoom ahead in making solar modules.
What is also making a difference is the government’s help and plans. The Production Linked Intensive (PLI) plays an important role. The scheme provides financial incentives to manufacturers with the aim to increase domestic production, reduce import dependence and generate employment opportunities.
India also put a 40% tax on imported solar panels to stop them from coming in too much from China and other parts of Asia.
What’s Next?
As per Moneycontrol, the government has shared that by April 2026, India plans to make 48 gigawatts (GW) of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules each year, all ‘Made in India’. And they are aiming even higher, planning to increase this to 100 GW.
The main reason is that Indian photovoltaic (PV) manufacturing companies are strategically prepared to expand their production capacity and adopt new technologies in the coming years on the back of government incentive programs.
That’s it for today. We hope you’ve found this article informative. Remember to spread the word among your friends. Until we meet again, stay curious!
*The article is for information purposes only. This is not an investment advice.
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