India plans PLI scheme for polysilicon manufacturing to reduce solar import dependence
New Delhi, Aug 9 (IANS) India is preparing a production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme to promote domestic manufacturing of polysilicon, a key raw material used in solar photovoltaic panels, as the government seeks to strengthen the country’s clean energy supply chain and reduce dependence on imports from China.
Speaking at a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) event here, Santosh Kumar Sarangi, Secretary in the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, said the proposed incentive programme would extend India’s manufacturing push deeper into the solar value chain and support the country’s long-term renewable energy ambitions.
India currently relies entirely on imports of polysilicon, with China dominating global production of the crucial input used in solar panel manufacturing.
The new scheme is expected to encourage investments in domestic capacity and help create a more integrated solar manufacturing ecosystem.
“The upcoming incentive programme could support more than 10 GW of polysilicon production capacity, although details regarding the size of the financial support are yet to be disclosed,” Sarangi said.
The move is part of the government’s broader strategy to build a comprehensive solar manufacturing supply chain covering modules, cells, wafers, ingots and polysilicon.
Policymakers have increasingly focused on boosting local manufacturing as solar installations accelerate across the country and demand for equipment continues to rise.
India has already provided manufacturing-linked incentives worth Rs 24,000 crore for solar cell and module production.
The latest proposal aims to address one of the remaining gaps in the domestic solar manufacturing chain and reduce exposure to imported raw materials.
The country has set an ambitious target of achieving 500 GW of non-fossil fuel power capacity by 2030, with solar energy expected to play a central role in meeting that goal.
“India has built more than 200 GW of solar module manufacturing capacity and over 32 GW of solar cell manufacturing capacity. An additional 100 GW of solar cell capacity is expected to become operational within the next year,” Sarangi mentioned.
–IANS
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