To help bring solar cell manufacturing at par with the module production capacity, Centre on July 28 ordered project developers to start using India-made solar cells from this year, instead of June 2026 as previously directed.
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) also asked power PSUs such as NTPC, SJVN, NHPC and Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) to tweak their tenders so as to include the mandate of Indian made solar cells in their renewable energy bids. These PSUs are also acting as renewable energy implementing agencies (REIAs) in India’s goal to achieve 500 GW of non-fossil power capacity by 2030.
“The mandate will be implemented 30 days after the MNRE releases the List II of modules and manufacturers which is specifically meant for solar cells. This list is expected by next month. So, all tenders by REIAs, say, from October onward will mandate the usage of Indian made solar cells,” a senior MNRE official said, adding that the list is still being finalised.
For bids taking place within the 30 days from the date of publishing the list, winning bidders will be exempted from the solar cell mandate.
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The government order clarified that there shall be no exemption for government schemes such as PM Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, PM KUSUM, which already have to mandatorily used Made in India solar modules and cells as part of the Centre's domestic content requirement (DCR) norms.
Centre is hopeful that the order will boost demand for Indian solar cells and hence, will reduce the wide gap between India’s solar module and cells manufacturing capacities. Currently, India has a capacity to produce 91 GW of solar photovoltaic (PV) modules, while the capacity of solar PV cells is only 27 GW, forcing many to resort to Chinese imports.
Tata Power, Adani Green Energy, Waaree Energies are the leading solar cell producers in India.
Moneycontrol on May 31 reported that the government is considering extending the deadline for renewable power companies setting up solar PV module manufacturing capacities under the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme. The companies selected for the PLI had to commission their integrated or partially-integrated solar module capacities by April 2026. However, progress on the ground stands at only about 20 percent, with 25.5 gigawatts (GW) commissioned out of the 130.7 GW awarded.
The incentives, according to the scheme, were to be disbursed over a period of five years after commissioning the projects.
India’s total solar module manufacturing capacity is nearly 91 GW, of which, 17.5 GW has come up under the PLI scheme. Similarly, India now has a solar cell manufacturing capacity of 27 GW, of which 6 GW has been developed under the PLI so far.
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