Solar Glass Manufacturing Plans Announced In India

• ASI and Vishakha Group have announced a joint venture to produce solar glass in India
• Under phase I, they plan to set up an operational capacity to cater to up to 3 GW of solar power plants
• The new fab will be located in Mundra, Gujarat and phase I is expected to come online over next 18 months to 24 months

India is gearing towards setting up an integrated solar production supply chain with several companies announcing their plans to venture into or expand solar PV manufacturing. Latest announcement in the growing list is for local solar glass manufacturing.

Integrated glass company catering to automotive and architecture industries, Asahi India Glass Limited (AIS) has announced plans to set up what they call as India's largest solar glass manufacturing plant in Mundra. It will be a joint venture with Vishakha Group, that manufactures flexible polymer packaging along with solar backsheets, EVA encapsulant sheets and solar module aluminum frames.

Under phase I, the plan is to establish solar glass manufacturing capacity in Gujarat's Mundra, to cater up to 3 GW of installable capacity of solar power plants. The new fab is scheduled to be commissioned within 18 to 24 months. AIS said it will pick up a minority stake in the solar glass business. The duo did not share too many details of their joint venture.

"We plan to compliment the technical expertise & experience of AIS with synergies from our other businesses in the entire solar value chain," said Vishakha Group's Chairman Jigish Doshi.

Their inspiration to enter solar glass manufacturing stems from the growing demand for solar power in India as the country aims to achieve 450 GW renewables capacity by 2030, leading to a surge in demand for solar power equipment and solar glass. Currently, Borosil is the main local solar glass manufacturer from India. Its efforts have led to tariffs being imposed on foreign suppliers (see India Imposes 9.71% Duty On Solar Glass From Malaysia).

Gujarat, where the two plan to set up their solar glass manufacturing facility, is emerging as one of the hubs for integrated PV manufacturing in India as several companies have zeroed in on the state to establish their production facilities, including Reliance Industries Limited that plans to set up 4 massive gigafactories including one for integrated solar manufacturing and energy storage (see Indian Billionaire Wants 4 New Energy Gigafactories).