Bharat Electronics and NHPC to establish gigawatt-scale solar manufacturing site in India

Facebook
Twitter
LinkedIn
Reddit
Email
NHPC established a joint venture to develop 500MW of floating PV in India last January. Image: Unsplash.

Two Indian state-owned companies, Bharat Electronics (BEL) and National Hydroelectric Power Corporation (NHPC), have signed a memorandum of understanding to establish a gigawatt-scale solar manufacturing site in India.

The companies have yet to disclose any information regarding to the technology used and when it will be operational, with the only information given that it will be a “vertically integrated solar manufacturing unit”.

This article requires Premium SubscriptionBasic (FREE) Subscription

Try Premium for just $1

  • Full premium access for the first month at only $1
  • Converts to an annual rate after 30 days unless cancelled
  • Cancel anytime during the trial period

Premium Benefits

  • Expert industry analysis and interviews
  • Digital access to PV Tech Power journal
  • Exclusive event discounts

Or get the full Premium subscription right away

Or continue reading this article for free

The announcement comes in line with the Indian government’s drive to establish a domestic manufacturing base in order to reduce the country’s dependency on solar imports from Chinese manufacturers.

India is set to double its solar module production capacity by the end of 2023 with an extra 18GW of capacity, according to JMK Research & Analysts.

Moreover, the country has been facing a 38% price increase in PV modules since 2020 which most recently has been in part impacted by the recent basic customs duty (BCD) that has been in place since 1 April 2022.

Earlier this year, NHCP established a joint venture (JV) with the Green Energy Development Corporation of Odisha Ltd (GEDCOL) for the development of 500MW of floating solar PV projects in the eastern state of Odisha.

The state-run power firm currently has more than 2.5GW of solar PV projects in different tender stages across India, with several projects involving floating solar PV.

Read Next

October 15, 2025
Wood Mackenzie has warned of a supply bottleneck as the renewable energy shift drives a spike in global copper demand over the next decade.
October 15, 2025
Ciel & Terre has launched a new floating PV structure designed to address the increasingly large scale of floating solar projects.
October 15, 2025
Indian module manufacturer Saatvik Green Energy, through its subsidiary Saatvik Solar Industries, has secured solar PV module orders worth INR6.89 billion (US$78 million).
October 14, 2025
India has installed 4.9GW of residential rooftop solar capacity in the first half of 2025, according to a report by IEEFA and JMK Research.
October 10, 2025
NTPC Renewable Energy Limited has signed an MoU with the Government of Gujarat to develop 15GW renewable energy projects in Gujarat.
October 9, 2025
Singapore-based Sembcorp Industries has agreed to acquire ReNew’s 300MW solar power unit in India for around US$246 million.

Subscribe to Newsletter

Upcoming Events

Solar Media Events
October 21, 2025
New York, USA
Solar Media Events
November 25, 2025
Warsaw, Poland
Solar Media Events
December 2, 2025
Málaga, Spain
Solar Media Events
February 3, 2026
London, UK