 "Adani")
Adani New Industries (ANIL), the green energy components manufacturing arm of Adani Enterprises (AEL), is setting up facilities to produce solar glass, aluminium frames, and backsheets — key parts for its existing solar cell and module manufacturing. French energy giant TotalEnergies holds a 25 per cent equity stake in ANIL, with AEL being the majority owner.
Senior executives said the plan revolves around building its own supply chain to support the solar cell and module manufacturing line. ANIL is currently producing polysilicon wafers, ingots, cells, and modules, creating an end-to-end system for the equipment required in solar module production.
“There are several ancillary products in the solar supply chain for which we have been reliant on imports. Domestic availability of these products is insufficient,” said a senior company executive.
“In solar glass, there are only a few players, but not at the scale we desire. Therefore, we now plan to manufacture these components in-house and integrate the supply chain,” the senior executive added.
In an emailed response, a spokesperson confirmed the development, saying that as part of their long-term strategy to build a resilient supply chain, Adani Solar is establishing one of India’s most comprehensive and state-of-the-art solar manufacturing ecosystems in Mundra, Gujarat.
“In addition to modules, cells, ingots, and wafers, this also includes component manufacturing through joint ventures for glass, aluminium, ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA), backsheets, etc.,” the spokesperson noted.
ANIL will set up an aluminium frame plant with a capacity of 10-12 gigawatt (Gw) and a similar capacity for backsheets. For glass, it plans to build 8 Gw of manufacturing capacity, according to a company executive.
To a query on capacity, the spokesperson said in an email, “Currently, Adani Solar has an operational capacity of 4 Gw for cells and modules and 2 Gw for ingots and wafers. Adani Solar is expected to scale this up to 10 Gw by 2030. Component manufacturing will also be scaled up to meet this requirement.”
Adani Group jointly promotes a glass manufacturing facility with Vishakha Gas (VGPL), located in Mundra Special Economic Zone. VGPL has a technology tie-up with Asahi India Glass — a leading manufacturer of automotive and float glass globally — which holds a 10 per cent stake in VGPL as of March 31, 2022, according to a report by CARE Ratings.
Adani Properties, the investment arm of AEL, has a strategic partnership with the parent company of VGPL to backward integrate the production of essential module components, such as EVA sheets, backsheets, glass panels, and metal frames, the report states.
The spokesperson did not disclose whether the investment would be routed through the arrangement with Vishakha Group but mentioned that the groundbreaking ceremony for the glass plant is scheduled for October this year. The executive did not reveal the amount of investment planned for these facilities.
Currently, Borosil Renewables is the largest producer of solar glass in India and one of the main players in the domestic market. According to the company’s website, Borosil has a solar glass manufacturing capacity of 8 Gw. In comparison, India currently requires solar glass in the range of 30-40 Gw as major companies scale up domestic manufacturing.
The lack of indigenous components is a major deterrent to domestic solar component manufacturers. As the Centre pushes for Make in India across the green manufacturing sector, several players are re-evaluating their component procurement strategies. Recently, Business Standard reported that Tata Power is looking to scale up the manufacturing of key components to meet the group’s needs across renewable energy projects.
The drive to source local content also aligns with these companies being winners of the Centre’s flagship production-linked incentive scheme for domestic solar manufacturing. The scheme aims to establish a domestic supply chain for solar components. Adani has won the tender for end-to-end solar manufacturing, while Tata has secured the contract for cells and modules. Other winners include Reliance Industries, JSW Energy, Avaada, and ReNew.
READY, SET, SOLAR
• Adani New Industries: The green supply chain manufacturing arm of Adani Enterprises
• Plants in solar category: Metallurgical grade and polysilicon solar — ingots, wafers, cells, modules, wind turbine generators, electrolysers, batteries, and fuel cells
Capacity:
>>Operational solar cells and modules: 4 Gw
>>Operational ingots & wafers: 2 Gw
• Planned capacity: 10 Gw integrated ingot, wafer, cell, and module
• Plans to build manufacturing capacity: A similar scale for solar glass, backsheets, and aluminium frames
