India witnessed high growth in new solar capacity additions as the country recovered from the impacts of the Covid-19. With increasing solar installations, solar developers’ demand for solar modules and cells has also increased.

The Government of India is focusing on increasing the domestic manufacturing capacity of solar cells and modules to meet the high demand by solar developers and minimize reliance on Chinese modules. It has launched a performance-linked incentive (PLI) program to support vertically integrated, gigawatt-scale manufacturing of high-efficiency solar modules.

Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency’s bids to set up manufacturing capacities for vertically integrated high-efficiency solar modules under the PLI program received a strong response. The bidders quoted a total capacity of 56.8 GW for polysilicon, ingot-wafer, cell, and module manufacturing.

Several module manufacturers, including First Solar, have announced new manufacturing facilities and the expansion of existing capacities in India.

Mercom will host a virtual conference, “Mercom India solar Forum2021,” on October 21. The virtual event will address ground realities and market outlook amid the changing solar space.

The event includes an exclusive discussion – “A Look at India’s Solar Supply Chain and Sourcing Strategies.” The panel will shed light on India’s solar supply chain and sourcing strategies. It will also discuss the plans of companies to source raw materials, manage the supply chain amid demand surge, and overcome existing barriers.

The panel includes Gaurav Sood, CEO of Sprng Energy; Ritudhwaj Singh, Country Manager at India Targray; Pradeep Kumar M, Managing Director – India and Sri Lanka Business, LONGi; and Rahul Khatri, Sales and Business Development Leader – South Asia, DuPont Photovoltaic Solutions.