2023: A Year for Stellar Growth in Solar Space

Indian solar industry is moving ahead full throttle towards achieving its target capacity of 500 GW worth of renewable energy by 2030. Globally, we are amongst the top four countries concerning total installations, surpassing many developed nations. India’s non-fossil fuel energy has grown by over 25% in 7 years. Currently, solar accounts for around 7% of India’s electricity generation. However, to achieve its 2070 net zero targets, India must utilize the enormous potential to generate clean energy, especially solar. The onset of 2023 has brought about a zeal in the solar energy sector, thus making it a promising year of growth and development.

Focus on large-scale installations
While we are at the cusp of being the world’s leading renewable energy producers, governments and companies in the renewable energy sector need to focus on large-scale rooftop & utility projects. The Indian rooftop solar market bounced back quickly post the COVID-19 pandemic, and 2021 proved to be the year for the industry. The Indian rooftop solar market is expected to record a CAGR of more than 15% over the forecast period 2022-2027. With increased awareness among consumers and government subsidies continuing, this forecast seems practically possible.

India surpassed the 64GW installed capacity, of which 51.7GW were utility-scale installations while rooftop installations were 10.4 GW. Further project pipeline is expected to stand at 53.4GW including the addition of 3.2 GW in Q4 of FY 2022-23.

In India, many states have huge solar parks contributing to the country’s total utility-scale & large-Scale solar installations. They can run on a plug-and-play model to attract handsome domestic and foreign investment in India. Andhra Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Telangana rank the leading states with the most prominent solar plants.

New in renewables
A lot is happening on the renewable energy front, like the evolution of the electric vehicle market. EPC companies are also more interested in new concepts like Floatovoltaics.

Floatovoltaics or Floating PV refers to the installation of solar panels on a water body instead of being fixed on the ground. The modular solar panels are mounted on floating platforms. Due to surrounding water acting as a natural coolant, Floatovoltaics are estimated to be 8-10% times more efficient than land-based solar plants. The global market of floating solar is expected to grow by $180 million by the year 2050.

Floatovoltaics, at present, accounts for only 1% of all solar installations in India. However, a 600-MW Floatovoltaics project is also under process on the Narmada Omkareshwar Dam at Khandwa, Madhya Pradesh, which is believed to be of Rs. 3000 crores.

How developing and nurturing of solar manufacturing sector can help?
Most industries have witnessed major supply-chain disruptions, which marred the demand-supply balance. One big takeaway from this situation was that we realized how dependent we were on imports. One big takeaway from this situation was the realization of dependence on imports. The Indian manufacturing sector can considerably reduce this dependency, especially in the renewable industry. Keeping renewable energy targets at the core, the Indian economy has turned to its manufacturing sector to take the onus of reducing import dependency.

According to the latest available data, solar module imports in India dipped by 64% in Q3 2022 compared to Q2 2022. But, on the other hand, cell imports increased by a similar amount. Therefore, it becomes even more crucial for domestic companies to ramp up manufacturing of other essential parts to make India a net exporter of solar equipment.

Responsively, the government has taken constructive steps to push domestic manufacturing of solar panels & other components by introducing schemes like Production Linked Incentive-II, implementation of Basic Customs Duty (BCD), and Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM). This has surely added huge impetus, but more still needs to be done to match domestic demand and cultivate the ability to cater to global markets.

Financing for solar
While solar is a booming industry globally and increasing in India, a few things need to be streamlined that directly involve government to implement policies. Finance has been a pain point for manufacturers, installation agencies, and consumers. Introducing various flexible project finance solutions would enhance the ability to speed up commissioning large-scale projects and encourage small-scale installers to take up more and more commercial & industrial projects.

Our plans for 2023
Grew offers 360° solutions and has already commissioned 10 MW solar Rooftop projects, while 50 MW ground mount solar projects are under execution. With an objective to aid ‘further and faster’ transition to renewable energy in India, we at Grew are coming up with a solar module manufacturing facility in Rajasthan with an initial production of 1 Gigawatt to commence by June this year. Over four years, the facility will catalyze a manufacturing capacity of 4 GW PV Modules, 3 GW PV cells, and a complete ecosystem. Additionally, Floatovoltaics is also something that interests us, and plans to come up with floating solar solutions are already in the pipeline.

Today, India is on the world map for its ambitious net zero targets; through Grew, Chiripal Renewables aims to contribute through its extensive product line and turnkey services/solutions. We aim to narrow down the huge gap in demand & supply of Solar PV modules and other components by reducing dependence on imports. Grew hopes to aid a ‘further and faster’ transition to renewable energy in India by accelerating consistent growth determined by sustainability, reliability, and responsibility.

- Atul Kamathi, Vice President (EPC), Grew Renewables Pvt. Ltd.