Solar energy engineering firm Waaree Energies' management told Moneycontrol that despite investor concerns that the ‘One Big Beautiful Bill Act’ may significantly impact demand for solar modules, the company remains confident about its plans in the US, owing to a large order book and a local manufacturing presence it now plans to expand.
The company noted that most of its US orders—more than half of Waaree’s consolidated Rs 47,000 crore order book—are longer-term contracts, with advances already paid. It is also banking on demand from data services and data centres driven by the large-scale use of generative AI—one search on a generative AI tool typically consumes ten times more energy than a conventional search engine query.
“Till 2028... nothing changes. The incentives will now start fading out from 2028 instead of 2029. But then again, three years is a pretty good amount of time. That is the assurance our customers and our investors have. Most of our orders in the US are long term, with a 12 to 24-month lag, and we have received advances for all of them. Demand is fairly robust. One of the key things the US wants to establish itself in is artificial intelligence, and there is bipartisan consensus around that. AI is a voracious consumer of power, and that is where the demand is coming from,” said Amit Paithankar, Waaree Energies' whole-time director and CEO, in an interaction with Moneycontrol.
Paithankar added that the bill’s provisions restricting tax credits for products linked to "foreign entities of concern (FEOC)"—mainly targeting Chinese manufacturers—provide opportunities for companies like Waaree to become a larger part of the supply chain in the US by selling ingots and wafers along with cells.
“Waaree has already complied with the Uyghur Forced Labour Prevention Act (UFLPA), which prohibits the use of polysilicon from the Xinjiang region in China. The equipment of the solar panels supplied to the US are already UFLPA-compliant. Since UFLPA and the foreign entities of concern provisions overlap...we are fairly confident that this is going to open up opportunities for Indian manufacturers, especially Waaree,” he said.
The contentious bill
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act is a legislative package championed by US President Donald Trump that aims to consolidate a range of Republican priorities into one comprehensive piece of legislation—covering tax cuts, spending reforms, and border security measures.
The bill, which significantly alters the US’s tax-and-spend framework, has been passed by the House of Representatives by a narrow margin and is now headed to the Senate for a final vote. However, the bill’s contents may change based on negotiations among lawmakers, who remain divided.
In its current form, the bill eliminates several provisions from laws such as the Inflation Reduction Act, which had provided a major boost to the US renewable energy industry and had prompted Waaree to begin manufacturing in the US. The bill will end the federal tax credit that homeowners are eligible for when installing rooftop solar panels. On the supply side, the bill accelerates the phasing out of tax credits for producing solar components—bringing the cutoff forward to 2031 from 2032.
Some other provisions under the IRA will also begin to phase down from 2028 instead of 2029. Paithankar, however, remained optimistic about demand over the next three years and investor confidence.
Investors were initially spooked by the bill’s passage, with Waaree’s stock falling 8 percent on May 23, hours after the House vote. However, continued orders from the US market—including a large $176 million order last week—have improved sentiment. Over the past week, the stock has gained nearly 5 percent on the National Stock Exchange, trading at Rs 2,947 apiece as of 1:16 pm on June 2.
Experts say the bill is aimed at boosting conventional energy sources such as oil and gas, coal, and nuclear, to rebalance the US energy mix. Paithankar, however, contended that solar energy remains the only power source deployable at attractive price points and on shorter timelines compared to thermal or nuclear energy.
Despite the potential phasing down or phasing out of both demand- and supply-side subsidies, Paithankar maintained that solar power is expected to remain the most cost-competitive source of energy.
US manufacturing plans
The company currently operates a solar module manufacturing facility in Brookshire, Texas, where it plans to invest around $1 billion to expand capacity from 1.6 gigawatts (GW) to 3.2 GW. Paithankar said the new bill does not impact the company’s investment plans in the US.
In addition, Waaree plans to invest another $200 million toward backward integration initiatives, such as manufacturing ingots and other solar module components. Paithankar said the company is also in discussions with multiple other US states to identify suitable sites.
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