'US firms keen to participate in India's solar programme'

Several American companies are looking at opportunities in India's renewable energy sector and are keen to participate in the National Solar Mission, US Exim Bank said on Friday.

"We are working with a number of renewable energy companies in the US and they are looking to increase their business here," said Fred P Hochberg, chairman of Export Import Bank ( Exim) of the United States.

The Bank is also helping companies like GE and Westinghouse in setting up nuclear projects in India. "...talks are moving forward. The real progress has been made in liability issue and Convention on Supplementary Compensation (CSC) issue and we are moving well on that path that will open India not only to United States but also to other countries to participate in generating nuclear power in India," he said.

Asked about the solar mission dispute with India at the WTO, he said: "I very much respect the idea of Make in India, at the same time we have to balance between local manufacturing and innovation in best technology. One has to find a path through that."

In 2014, the US dragged India to WTO on the country's solar mission. The US alleged that India's programme appears to discriminate against the US solar equipment by requiring solar energy producers to use locally manufactured cells and by offering subsidies to those developers who use domestic equipment. It also alleged that forced localisation requirements restricted US exports to Indian markets. After losing the battle at WTO last year, India is looking to modify its solar power programme.

National Solar Mission aims to establish India as a global leader in solar energy by creating the policy conditions for its diffusion across the country as quickly as possible. The US primarily exports thin film technology for the solar panel.