Improvement in India-China ties will aid solar supply chain: Vikram Solar

Kolkata, Aug 21 (PTI) An improvement in India-China relations will strengthen the solar supply chain for Indian manufacturers without reviving the threat of dumping, which has been effectively curbed by government duty measures, a top official of the country’s leading solar panel maker said.

Allaying apprehensions that better ties with China could weaken safeguards against cheap imports, Vikram Solar CMD Gyanesh Chaudhary said government policies such as customs duties, Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme and ALMM guidelines have ensured a protective environment for domestic manufacturers.

“Better ties with China are good for us because our access to raw material supply chains improves. But unlike in the past, when Chinese dumping hurt the domestic industry, today the government has secured Indian manufacturers,” Chaudhary told PTI.

He pointed out that the imposition of 40 per cent basic customs duty on modules and 25 per cent on cells, along with the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme and Approved List of Models and Manufacturers guidelines (ALMM), has created a protective environment for domestic players.

Chaudhary emphasised that while India’s dependence on China for solar components was almost 100 per cent when solar initiatives began, it has now reduced to about 80 per cent.

He noted that the domestic ecosystem is developing rapidly, with expectations that this dependence will decline significantly within the next three to five years.

“Chinese dumping has come to a grinding halt. As a result, more than 90 per cent of our revenue last year came from the domestic market,” Chaudhary said.

On the outlook for anti-dumping duties, he refrained from speculating on possible changes but added, “I would assume the government of India, with its strong domestic manufacturing push, will continue to secure local producers from dumping.” Chaudhary downplayed concerns over US tariffs. Vikram Solar, which has had a subsidiary in the US for nearly a decade, is waiting for clarity on tariff changes before scaling up exports.

"India shipped just 2 GW of modules to the US last year, compared to a domestic market of more than 50 gigawatts. Exports contributed only around 1 per cent of our revenue. We are betting big on the domestic market. But with the strong bond between India and the US, we see global opportunities opening up in the future,” he said. PTI BSM NN