Will do away with protectionist barriers if there is profiteering: RK Singh to wind OEMs

RE

Union Minister for Power and Renewable Energy, RK Singh, issued a warning to renewable energy (RE) equipment manufacturers on May 25, urging them to prioritize building RE capacity in India rather than exporting most of their products.

Speaking at a conference organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) in New Delhi, Singh acknowledged that the government had implemented tariff and non-tariff barriers to protect domestic manufacturing but emphasized that it did not give manufacturers free rein to prioritize profits.

Singh specifically highlighted the wind energy sector, expressing concern that a majority of manufacturers were exporting all their products. Although there was a suggestion to mandate the sale of at least 50 percent of manufactured wind energy products within India, Singh stated that he currently wanted the capacity to grow and urged manufacturers to contribute to capacity addition.

He warned that if large-scale exports of wind energy parts persisted, the government might eliminate the List of Models and Manufacturers (LMM) for wind energy. This would allow individuals to import windmills and generators with higher capacities, such as 6 MW, compared to the current 2 MW capacity in India.

To ensure the healthy and orderly growth of the wind power sector, the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (MNRE) has issued guidelines for wind power project development since July 1995, periodically revising the Revised List of Models and Manufacturers of Wind Turbines (RLMM).

Additionally, the government provides financial incentives, such as concessional customs duty exemption on critical components required for manufacturing Wind Turbine Generators (WTG), to encourage domestic WTG production.

Singh emphasized that capacity development was crucial, and he would not compromise on that objective. He called upon manufacturers to prioritize the country's need for capacity over their own profits. If manufacturers failed to align with this goal, Singh warned that he would seek alternative solutions.

Regarding the solar energy sector, Singh mentioned that the government had introduced two production-linked incentives (PLIs) to encourage the domestic production of cells and modules.

However, he received inputs suggesting that manufacturers were selling a significant portion of their products to other countries due to increased RE capacities elsewhere. While the government supports exports, Singh emphasized the need to balance exports with building domestic capacities.

Chasing an ambitious target of having 500 gigawatts (GW) of renewable energy (RE) capacity by 2030, the government on April 25 this year released a detailed agency-wise break-up on inviting bids for RE projects totalling 50 GW for 2023-24.

India's current total renewable energy capacity, excluding large hydro and nuclear plants, was 125 GW (125,159.81 MW) till March 2023, the latest report by the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) showed. At present, RE has a share of 26.53 percent of the total installed generation capacity in the country.