India is planning to strengthen domestic polysilicon manufacturing as the Centre seeks to reduce the country’s dependence on imports for a crucial raw material used in solar panel production. The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy is working on an incentive scheme aimed at encouraging companies to establish polysilicon manufacturing capacity in India. The initiative is part of a broader effort to build a more integrated domestic solar manufacturing ecosystem, from raw materials to finished modules.

India has rapidly expanded its solar manufacturing capabilities in recent years, particularly in the production of solar modules and photovoltaic cells. However, polysilicon remains a major gap in the domestic supply chain. Polysilicon is a high-purity form of silicon used to manufacture solar cells and is positioned at the beginning of the conventional crystalline-silicon photovoltaic manufacturing process. Dependence on imported polysilicon means that Indian manufacturers remain exposed to international supply conditions and the availability of the material from overseas producers.

The proposed incentive programme is intended to encourage investment in domestic polysilicon production and help create capacity within India. The initial proposal focused on supporting more than 10 GW of polysilicon manufacturing capacity. The Centre is now considering a substantially larger target, with plans under discussion for at least 30 GW of domestic polysilicon capacity by 2030. Such a move would represent an attempt to address the raw-material bottleneck while expanding India's ability to manufacture solar equipment within the country.

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The polysilicon initiative is also linked to India's wider plans for expanding capacity across the solar value chain. The government is targeting 80 GW of domestic ingot and wafer manufacturing capacity, which would provide another important link between polysilicon production and solar cell manufacturing. In the conventional solar manufacturing process, polysilicon is converted into ingots, which are then sliced into wafers. These wafers are processed into cells before being assembled into solar modules. Building capacity across these stages could therefore reduce the need to source key components from international markets.

Reducing dependence on China is an important part of the broader policy objective because China has a dominant position across several stages of the global solar supply chain, particularly in polysilicon, ingot and wafer manufacturing. For India, developing domestic capacity at the upstream end of the industry could provide greater control over supplies of critical solar manufacturing inputs. It could also complement the country’s existing investments in cell and module production, allowing manufacturers to source a larger share of their requirements domestically rather than relying on imports.

The proposed polysilicon push comes as India continues to expand renewable energy capacity and increase its focus on domestic manufacturing. Establishing large-scale polysilicon plants, however, would require significant investment, specialised technology and reliable access to energy and other industrial inputs. The government’s proposed incentives are therefore aimed at making upstream solar manufacturing more viable for domestic and international investors. If the planned capacity targets are implemented, the initiative could mark a significant expansion of India’s solar manufacturing base, extending domestic production beyond cells and modules to some of the earliest stages of the photovoltaic supply chain.

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