New Delhi: The Centre on Wednesday mandated the use of locally manufactured solar wafers and ingots in large renewable energy projects and government-backed schemes from June 2028.
The move expands the scope of the approved list of models and manufacturers (ALMM) — currently applicable to modules and, from June this year, cells — to components that remain reliant on imports from China.
“MNRE has expanded the ALMM Order to introduce ALMM List-III for ingots and wafers, which will take effect from 1 June 2028. Suitable grandfathering provisions have been built in to protect projects already in the pipeline,” said a statement from the ministry of new and renewable energy.
Ingots are used to manufacture wafers, which in turn are used to develop cells. Cells are assembled to manufacture modules.
The move marks a step towards building a robust, self-reliant solar manufacturing ecosystem that will boost domestic production, strengthen supply chains, reduce import dependence and enhance quality across the solar value chain, said minister for new and renewable energy Pralhad Joshi.
“With the expansion of the ALMM framework to include ingots and wafers, India is positioning itself as a strong global player in renewable energy. Advancing towards a cleaner, greener future and the goal of 500 GW non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030,” he said.
ALMM-I and II refer to the lists of locally-manufactured modules and cells approved by the ministry under the norm to supply to the government backed projects.
What experts and the industry say
National Solar Energy Federation of India, an industry body of solar power generators, said given the capital-intensive nature of upstream manufacturing and the scale required to meet domestic demand, it is critical that enabling support mechanisms are aligned with the policy timeline. The industry body has requested the ministry to roll out a dedicated viability gap funding (VGF) for ingots wafers as well as manufacturing equipment.
Srivatsan Iyer, CEO, Hero Future Energies said, “While this presents a strong opportunity to accelerate domestic innovation, reduce import dependence, and enhance long-term energy security, given that this will require careful capacity planning, ecosystem readiness, and significant capacity build-up, pushing the target date back would lead to a more robust manufacturing ecosystem, and not cause any short-term disruptions.”
India currently has only about 2 GW of wafer and ingot capacity. Globally, the solar equipment ecosystem is dominated by China.
Vinay Rustagi, chief business officer, Premier Energies Ltd, said, “Currently 100% of our demand for solar wafers is met from imports, making the sector highly prone to supply shocks, exchange rate volatility and trade disruption. We expect total investment of around ₹50,000 crores in this business over the next three years bringing tens of thousands of jobs plus special tech know-how.”
Companies including Avaada, Waaree Energies, ReNew have announced plans to foray into wafer and ingot manufacturing.
