According to m.economictimes.com, India is launching a new Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme targeting domestic polysilicon manufacturing to reduce its total reliance on Chinese imports of this critical solar material.
Strategic Shift in Solar Supply Chain
The initiative marks a deliberate expansion of India’s PLI program deeper into upstream solar manufacturing. Currently, India imports 100% of its polysilicon — the foundational raw material for photovoltaic cells — exclusively from China. Santosh Kumar Sarangi, Secretary of the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, announced the plan at a Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) event in New Delhi on August 7, 2026. He emphasized that the move aims to “push India’s manufacturing incentive programme deeper into the solar supply chain and cut import dependence.”
The government’s broader clean energy target anchors this effort: achieving 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel power capacity by 2030. To meet that goal, India must strengthen local production across the full value chain — from polysilicon and ingots to wafers, cells, and modules — all segments where Chinese manufacturers hold dominant global market share.
Scale and Scope of the New Scheme
Sarangi indicated the proposed PLI scheme could support more than 10 GW of annual polysilicon production capacity. While he did not disclose the financial size of the incentive, the government has previously allocated ₹240 billion (approximately $2.52 billion) under earlier PLI tranches for solar module and cell manufacturing. This new phase extends those incentives upstream to address the most import-dependent node in the solar supply chain.
The scheme is explicitly designed to build an integrated domestic ecosystem covering polysilicon, ingots, wafers, cells, and modules. As Sarangi noted, deeper domestic manufacturing would not only advance India’s clean energy ambitions but also enhance industrial competitiveness — especially given polysilicon’s dual-use application in semiconductors, broadening the economic impact beyond renewables alone.
Current Domestic Capacity and Near-Term Targets
India has already established substantial downstream manufacturing infrastructure. According to Sarangi, the country has built over 200 GW of solar panel manufacturing capacity and more than 32 GW of solar cell capacity. An additional 100 GW of cell capacity is expected to come online within approximately one year. Further, India aims to achieve at least 80 GW of solar ingot and wafer manufacturing capacity by June 2028.
This phased capacity build-out underscores a coordinated national strategy: first securing module and cell assembly, then progressively moving upstream to secure feedstock control. The polysilicon PLI represents the logical next step — one that directly confronts the vulnerability exposed by near-total import reliance on a single geopolitical source.
Broader Implications for Supply Chain Resilience
From a supply chain perspective, the polysilicon PLI signals a structural recalibration toward strategic autonomy in critical clean-tech inputs. Unlike downstream assembly, polysilicon production requires high-purity quartz feedstock, energy-intensive metallurgical processes, and specialized expertise — making it both capital- and knowledge-intensive. Success will depend on attracting investment not just in manufacturing plants but also in supporting infrastructure, skilled workforce development, and quality certification systems aligned with international solar-grade standards.
The initiative also aligns with global trends among major economies. The U.S. Inflation Reduction Act and the EU’s Net-Zero Industry Act similarly prioritize domestic production of solar materials to mitigate geopolitical risk and ensure long-term price stability. For supply chain professionals, this shift means greater emphasis on supplier diversification audits, dual-sourcing feasibility assessments for silicon-based components, and early engagement with emerging Indian polysilicon producers once the PLI framework is finalized and launched.
Source: m.economictimes.com
Compiled from international media by the SCI.AI editorial team.
