Global technology company Moser Baer plans to raise Rs 300-400 crore of debt in the next two to three months to fund expansion, primarily to increase the crystalline silicon capacity of its photo voltaic (PV) business by 100 Mw from the current 140 Mw.
“Our immediate plan or phase one of the expansion is about our crystalline silicon capacity. In PV, for the second consecutive quarter, we have been able to achieve strong shipment and corresponding revenue. We are now actively implementing our expansion plans of the crystalline silicon facility,” Yogesh Mathur, Group Chief Financial Officer, told Business Standard.
Phase two of expansion relates to an increase in the combination of both thin film and crystalline silicon facilities. Moser Baer’s current production capacity is of 80 Mw crystalline cells, 80 Mw crystalline modules, and 40 Mw thin films with expansion plans in place.
The company expects PV to contribute almost half to Moser Baer’s business over the next three-four years. The contribution of PV currently stands at 25 per cent. Moser Baer PV (MBPV) clocked shipment revenue of more than 25 Mw (above Rs 200 crore) for the fourth quarter ended March 31.
“The thin film technology is best suited in ramping up grid-connected solar farms in high ambient temperature regions like India,” said Rajiv Arya, CEO, Solar Business, Moser Baer India.
The company commissioned its largest thin film solar farm with an installed capacity of 1-Mw at Chandrapur in Maharashtra. This project was awarded by Mahagenco, the state government’s power generation company. Moser Baer signed a consortium agreement with Germany-based SunEnergy Europe for this project. The farm has been set up using amorphous silicon thin film technology and is connected to the 33 KVA local grid.
It plans to commission its second solar farm in the country in the next quarter. The 5-Mw farm will be set up in Tamil Nadu, with an investment of $20 million (Rs 90 crore) and a farm of similar capacity will be set up in Rajasthan after that, said Mathur.
