Chinese vendors dominate supply chain of Indian solar PLI scheme winners: Report

Renewable energy sector leaders such as Reliance New Energy Solar, Tata Power, ReNew Solar, Avaada Electro, and Waaree Energies have listed vendors from China as major suppliers.

The English Daily reported that Indosol (Shridi Sai), one of the winners in the first tranche of solar PLI, has listed 94 vendors of which 65 are Chinese whereas Reliance New Energy listed all its 20 foreign vendors from China.

Businesses pledged ₹1.07 trillion of investments under PLI scheme: Sitharaman

However, Adani Mundra, the solar manufacturing division of Adani Group has not submitted any names to the government yet.

Tata Power Solar, winner of the second tranche of the PLI scheme has mentioned seven suppliers/supply chain partners of which four have Chinese origin, two are from Germany, and one from Singapore, respectively.

Waaree Energies, one of India’s oldest solar equipment manufacturers has 17 supply chain partners for its PLI project are all Chinese.

Budget may accelerate share of EVs in 2024, but conditions apply

Among other firms, VSL Solar, AMPIN Solar, and Grew Energy have more than 90% of their vendors from China.

The firms have submitted the list to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy to facilitate the grant of visas for foreign experts of agencies.

Citing experts, the Business Standard report mentioned that Indian players depend on China for the factory equipment to set up the required assembly lines.

India’s latest tariff cuts chime with its PLI market defiance

Since India’s solar module manufacturing capacity is at a nascent stage, the supply chain needed to set up is also China-dominated.

The PLI scheme for solar is aimed at boosting the domestic supply chain of solar power equipment, and reducing the dependency on imports.

Around 70% of India’s solar power generation capacity is built on China-made solar equipment.

The government in 2021 announced PLI schemes for 14 sectors such as telecommunication, white goods, textiles, manufacturing of medical devices, automobiles, speciality steel, food products, high-efficiency solar PV modules, advanced chemistry cell battery, drones, and pharma, with an outlay of ₹1.97 lakh crore.

The schemes aim to attract investments in key sectors and cutting-edge technology; ensure efficiency, bring economies of size and scale in the manufacturing sector and make Indian companies and manufacturers globally competitive.

PLI scheme eyed for critical minerals

The objective is to bring all stakeholders on a common platform, fostering a sense of ownership to facilitate exchange of knowledge and experiences, good practices and success stories, ultimately contributing to the successful implementation of PLI schemes.

Milestone Alert!
Livemint tops charts as the fastest growing news website in the world 🌏 Click here to know more.

Here’s your comprehensive 3-minute summary of all the things Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said in her Budget speech: Click to download!

Published: 08 Feb 2024, 10:53 AM IST