India's Solar Revolution: Boosting Domestic Production and Exports

India is transforming its solar industry landscape through enhanced domestic manufacturing, significantly reducing reliance on imports. Major companies are expanding production, targeting international markets, while government policies and initiatives like the PLI scheme further bolster growth. Despite progress, challenges remain in achieving self-sufficiency in solar components.

In recent years, India has witnessed a significant transformation in its solar energy sector, primarily driven by the growth of domestic manufacturing capacities and proactive government policies. These efforts are steering India towards self-reliance in solar cell and module production.

According to analytics services provider Rubix, imports of solar cells and modules plummeted by 20 percent and 57 percent, respectively, in the first eight months of fiscal year 2024-25. A notable decline was observed in imports from China, which dropped to 56 percent for solar cells and 65 percent for modules, compared to over 90 percent and other higher figures in previous years.

Key players like TP Solar, Reliance Industries, Waaree Energies, Vikram Solar, and others are expanding their capacities in gigawatts, buoyed by India's governmental policy shifts promoting local production. The Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme further supports this growth by incentivizing domestic manufacturing. However, despite these advances, Rubix notes that India still depends on imports for solar photovoltaic cells and wafers due to limited domestic capabilities in these areas.

As manufacturing scales up, Indian photovoltaic companies are increasingly setting their sights on the export market. Rubix highlighted that, in value terms, India's solar module exports were nearly 35 times that of solar cell exports in 2023-24. Major players such as Waaree Energies, Adani Solar, and Vikram Solar have led the charge in exports, with over half of their production going overseas.

Other firms like Grew Energy, ReNew Power, and Solex Energy are also expanding into international markets. These efforts are crucial, given India's commitments at COP26 to significant reductions in carbon emissions and a transition towards renewable energy sources. With a global momentum towards green energy, India's push in the solar sector is aligned with its ambitious climate goals.

(With inputs from agencies.)