Vikram Solar shifts expansion focus to Tamil Nadu, Bengal unit to see limited growth

Kolkata, Aug 20 (PTI) City-based solar panel maker Vikram Solar Ltd will see the bulk of its upcoming capacity expansion shift to Tamil Nadu, even as the company targets an aggressive ramp-up to 17.5 GW of solar modules and 12 GW of solar cells by FY27, officials said.

At present, the company operates 4.5 GW of module capacity — with its largest plant of 3.5 GW at Falta SEZ in West Bengal and 1.3 GW at Oragadam near Chennai.

The lion's share of new projects, however, will now come up at Vallam and Gangaikondan in Tamil Nadu, including a major integrated solar cell and module facility involving significant capital expenditure. In West Bengal, Vikram Solar will invest Rs 400 crore to add 2 GW of modules at its Falta unit, taking its total capacity there to 5.5 GW.

"By FY27 we are aiming to ramp up capacity to 17.5 GW of modules and backward integration for a capacity of 12 GW of cells," CMD Gyanesh Chaudhary said.

In the first phase, the expansion — comprising 6 GW of modules and 3 GW of cell manufacturing — will be funded through a mix of IPO proceeds, debt, and incentives. Tamil Nadu will extend about Rs 900 crore in subsidies to the company over the lifecycle of the new projects.

Meanwhile, Vikram Solar's Rs 2,079.4 crore IPO, which opened on August 19 and closes on August 21, is already oversubscribed 4.4 times. The company raised Rs 620.81 crore from 43 institutional investors via the anchor book on August 18.

The issue comprises a fresh issue of Rs 1,500 crore and an offer for sale by promoters. Post-issue, the promoter stake will fall to 63.1 per cent from 77.6 per cent.

Additionally, Vikram Solar has secured Rs 1,700 crore debt financing from IREDA, while PLI incentives of Rs 528 crore and Tamil Nadu subsidies of Rs 900 crore will support the projects.

Founded in 2006, Vikram Solar is among India's largest solar module makers and is now seeking to build a fully integrated solar ecosystem with backward linkages into cell manufacturing. PTI BSM RG