India Solar PV News Snippets: Industrial Gases Supplier Enters PV Module Manufacturing & More
Airox Nigen has announced a new solar module manufacturing factory in Haryana under the Ahaan Solar brand that will start operations from mid next year. (Illustrative Photo; Photo Credit: IM Imagery/Shutterstock.com)
Airox Nigen to produce PV modules: Indian industrial gasses company Airox Nigen has announced its foray into solar PV module manufacturing under the brand name Ahaan Solar. It plans a 2 GW solar module factory in Haryana’s Rohnat in a renewable energy park on which it broke ground recently. This TOPCon factory will start with an initial 600 MW capacity set to come online by mid-2025. The full 2 GW capacity is planned to be achieved by 2026-end. It will use domestically manufactured solar cells. The company is also building a 3 GW Aspire Hydrogen plant to manufacture electrolyzers. Both these ventures will operate under AIROX NIGEN-Green Hydrogen & Industrial Gas Solutions as their parent company.
Mahindra raises finance for 560 MW: Mahindra Susten subsidiary Martial Solren has raised INR 14.48 billion ($170.6 million) from HDFC Bank and Axis Bank to develop 560 MW of solar power project capacity in Gujarat and Rajasthan. It is developing these projects under long-term power purchase agreements (PPA) with key offtakers. On completion, this capacity is expected to generate close to 900,000 MWh annually.
2 GW EPC contract: Waaree Group’s EPC arm Waaree Renewables Technologies Ltd (WAAREERTL) has secured the term sheet to provide EPC services for a ground-mounted solar PV project with 2.12 GW DC capacity. It will be built for INR 12.33 billion ($145.3 million). Another group company, Waaree Forever Energies Private Limited, has received a letter of award (LoA) for the development of a 170 MW solar power plant in Madhya Pradesh. The order has been placed by Rewa Ultra Mega Solar Limited (RUMSL) to connect the project to the Inter-State Transmission System (ISTS). It will supply clean energy to the Madhya Pradesh Power Management Company Ltd. and the Indian Railways.
Additionally, the group has also received a 1 GW solar module supply order from a ‘renowned customer’ in the business of renewable energy development. It will attempt to deliver the same within FY 2024-25 and FY 2025-26.
NABL accreditation: Waaree Group’s solar PV manufacturing arm Waaree Energies Ltd. has secured National Accreditation Board for Testing and Calibration Laboratories (NABL) accreditation for its PV Module Test Lab (PMTL) in Chikhli, Gujarat. It says this accreditation affirms the lab’s competence in delivering precise and reliable results across a wide array of testing parameters. The PMTL performs over 48 tests, including thermal cycling, damp heat, mechanical load, and potential-induced degradation. This is the company’s 2nd NABL accreditation, as its Tumb-located factory was the 1st in the group to achieve this. “With advanced testing capabilities now extended to our Chikhli facility, we can certify even larger volumes of solar modules domestically, reducing reliance on foreign labs and saving valuable resources,” said Waaree Energies CEO Dr. Amit Paithankar.
SolarSquare’s fundraise: Rooftop solar solutions provider SolarSquare has raised $40 million in a Series B fundraise to expand its operations across 50 cities in the country, up from the current 20 cities it is currently present in. The funding round was led by venture capital firm Lightspeed, with participation from Lightrock, and its existing investors Elevation Capital, Chris Sacca’s Lowercarbon, Nithin Kamath’s Rainmatter, and Gruhas Proptech. Its previous funding round of INR 1 billion also had Elevation Capital and Lowercarbon as its funders.
Indian solar export and import activity registered a decline on a QoQ basis. (Photo Credit: Mercom India Research)
Indian solar import-export: During Q3 2024, India imported INR 986.5 million ($82.6 billion) worth of solar cells and modules, representing a 19% decline year-on-year (YoY) as local capacity came online. Of these 60% comprised modules, according to the Department of Commerce data, compiled by Mercom India Research. On a quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) basis, solar imports went up by 27%. Chinese manufacturers continue to dominate the market with 89.5% of solar module and cell imports, representing a 68.2% QoQ increase.
Indian exports declined by 61.6% QoQ in Q3 this year with manufacturers shipping out INR 208.6 million ($17.5 billion) worth of solar cells and modules. Solar module exports dropped by 55.2%, and cell exports by 49.9%. The US was the largest destination as it accounted for 92.3% of the quarter’s exports, but solar module and cell shipments to the country fell 57.5% QoQ.
Renewable Energy for Green Ammonia: Petronas-backed Gentari Renewables has announced a firm and binding power purchase agreement (PPA) with AM Green Ammonia India Private Limited (AMG Ammonia). Under the agreement, Gentari’s subsidiary Gentari Renewables India Castor One Private Limited will supply 650 MW of round-the-clock (RTC) carbon-free energy to power AMG Ammonia’s upcoming green ammonia facilities. The latter is building one of the world’s largest green ammonia platforms with 5 million tons/year production by 2030.
Gentari will support it with close to 2.4 GW of new solar and wind capacity in Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka, integrating it with 350 MW/2,100 MWh energy storage to supply firm and dispatchable green power. It said the power arrangement is aligned with the requirements of the Renewable Fuels of Non-Biological Origin (RNFBO) framework, under which AMG Ammonia will be able to supply its ammonia to customers in Europe and other international markets.