Moser Baer India?s solar business grew to over $100 million in FY10. The firm expects incremental growth this fiscal, banking on a strong rebound in the global photo-voltaic market. CEO Rajiv Arya tells FE?s Goutam Das that the firm is ramping up capacity.
Your investment proposal under the semiconductor policy had received financial closure. Where would you expand?
Our investment in solar photovoltaic manufacturing has crossed the threshold minimum of Rs 1,000 crore, required under the semi-conductor policy. We are the first company in the country to achieve this milestone in the photo-voltaic business.
We plan to expand crystalline silicon manufacturing capacity in Greater Noida.
We have submitted our proposal to the government and are awaiting approval.
What production targets are you eyeing after ramping up capacity?
We will double our production capacity of crystalline silicon cells and modules to almost 200 mw in the current fiscal. The solar market is again growing rapidly. It is witnessing a sharp V shape recovery globally.
With the implementation of National Solar Mission (NSM), we plan to retain our leadership in the PV solar sector.
What is driving the firm?s PV business?
Germany is rebounding significantly. We are well-entrenched in Germany and are ideally positioned to reap the benefits of this growth. We expect our international expertise will help us grow rapidly in India post the announcement of NSM.
Conducive policies and regulations are promoting usage of solar energy in a big way. Solar has emerged as a clean and renewable source of energy that can be tapped easily ? it is available for free and solar farm can be commissioned speedily. All of this adds to solar being considered as one of the most suitable sources of energy.
Apart from Germany and Spain, which are the other emerging countries for solar photo voltaic exports for Indian producers?
Japan, USA, Italy, France are among the countries that are opening in a significant manner. Australia is also emerging as a key market. We have been listed by CEC to offer our PV solar products there.
We offer our modules in more than 25 countries and today we are the only solar company globally to have been accredited with five-star Rating by TuV Rheinland on quality systems.
This accreditation is a reflection of the strong acceptance of our modules globally.
What are the emerging solar PV applications in India ? How far are we from grid connectivity?
With the announcement of NSM, India has made the right beginning towards solar energy as mainstream source of power. Today, solar applications are gaining ground especially in rural areas where there is lack of power.
We are a major player in three segments of PV application ? ground mounted, roof-top and off grid applications. We have commissioned projects that are already grid connected and we will be commissioning more and more such projects.