India's solar PV module capacity to reach 125 GW by 2030: Pralhad Joshi

India's solar PV module manufacturing capacity will increase to 125 gigawatt (GW) by 2030 from the current 80 GW, and its installed solar cell manufacturing capacity will soon touch 40 GW from 25 GW at present, Union Minister of New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi said in Gujarat's Navsari district on Saturday.

In 2014, solar PV module manufacturing was nearly absent in the country, he said after inaugurating a state-of-the-art 5.4 GW solar cell manufacturing facility of Waaree Energies Limited at Degam here.  "Today, companies like Waaree are producing 80 GW solar PV modules. By 2030, our total solar PV manufacturing capacity will be 125 GW. Similarly, solar cell manufacturing was nil in 2014. But today we are manufacturing 25 GW, and very soon we will reach a target of 40 GW. We are moving ahead with the thinking of integrated solar, right from polysilicon to module, to be manufactured in India," he said.  India has emerged as the world's third largest producer of renewable energy, and will achieve the target of 500 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030 from 220 GW currently, the Union minister added. He said the target of 500 GW would be achieved because "if Prime Minister Narendra Modi is there then it is possible". The world's largest bid for green ammonia was brought out by India, and 50 per cent export order has been booked for electrolyser and green hydrogen manufacturing, Joshi pointed out.  "We're the third largest producer of renewable energy. Ten years ago, we were nowhere on the map of renewable energy. A lot has been achieved under the leadership of PM Modi. India is back to basics in harnessing the power of nature and has emerged as not just a participant but the leader in global renewable energy," he said.  Despite having 17 per cent of the global population, India's greenhouse gas emission contribution is less than 4 per cent, but this has not made the country stay back because PM Modi has said the country will harness the sun and wind to make earth safe for the next generation, Joshi emphasised.  "Solar PV modules used to be imported from China and other countries. But I can say with pride that when we prepared ALMM (Approved List of Models and Manufacturers), we provided thousands of crores of rupees under Production Linked Incentive (PLI) and viability gap funding scheme for local manufacture of solar components for Central government schemes such as PM Suryaghar Yojana, PM Kusum etc," he said.  It is the government's commitment that everything from polysilicon to module and from green ammonia to methanol will be manufactured in India and it will become a world leader. "The demand for energy in India is growing fast, By 2032, our country's energy demand will be doubled, with as many as 18,100 villages providing electric connectivity, and India becoming the world's manufacturing hub because of its credibility and availability of human resources. India's electricity generation capacity for the last 60 years was 269 GW, but in the last 10 years, it has increased to 459 GW," he said.  Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel, speaking on the occasion, hailed Modi for establishing Gujarat as a "development role model and growth engine" as well as a "policy driven state." "Ease of doing business, pro-people policies and infrastructure facilities have helped Gujarat become a state of choice for industrialists and inventors. We have taken the tradition further and brought out Atmanirbhar Gujarat policy to attract more large and emerging industries," Patel said. Under the policy, 183 units have become functional with an investment of Rs 43,000 crore, the Gujarat CM said.