India’s Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme is expected to add up to 40GW of additional cell and module manufacturing capacity in the country as it operates in tandem with the country’s upcoming Basic Customs Duty (BCD), according to Indian rating agency ICRA, a Moody's Investors Service company.
The National Solar Energy Federation of India (NSEFI), which represents companies from across the PV value chain, has written to the Indian central government raising concerns about the upcoming imposition of a Basic Customs Duty (BCD) of 25% on solar PV cells and 40% on solar PV modules.
Indian utility Tata Power will aim to take advantage of policy support from India’s government as it sets up new cell and module manufacturing capacity in the country.
The Indian government’s budget announcement on Monday (1 February) is set to be a “game-changer” for domestic manufacturing following the imposition of a Basic Customs Duty (BCD) of 25% on solar PV cells and of 40% on solar PV modules from April this year.
The Indian government is reportedly either considering a delay to its customs duty on imported solar products or allowing domestic projects to push back deadlines in light of uncertainty from Chinese suppliers, the country’s renewable energy minister, RK Singh, told the Economic Times.
Module and cell manufacturers in India will expand their production capabilities by 13.75GW for modules and 6.9GW for solar cells, according to research by JMK Research and Analytics
Two senior figures from Indian solar manufacturing companies have said government proposals to boost the country’s domestic PV industry through duties on imported equipment do not go far enough.