The Indian government has launched a National Mission on Solar Energy.

Indeed, Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh recently pledged to "pool scientific, technical and managerial talents with financial sources to develop solar energy as a source of abundant energy to power our economy and to transform the lives of our people and change the face of India."

As IT Examiner previously reported, the Indian photovoltaics market is expected to signifcantly expand in the near future.  

For example, India's Moser Baer Photovoltaic Ltd (MBPVL) currently maintains an annual manufacturing capacity of 80 MW for crystalline cells, 50 MW of thin-film modules and 10 MW of concentrator modules. The company is hoping to produce more than 600 MW of thin-film single and 500 MW of crystalline and concentrator modules by 2010. MBPVL is also slated to invest Rs 200 billion ($5 million) in a PV and nanotechnology factory in Tamil Nadu.

In addition, Tata BP Solar, a joint venture between the giant Tata Group of India and BP Solar of the UK is reportedly close to finalizing a $100 million investment for the construction of a 128 MW solar cell manufacturing plant near its existing Bangalore facility.

A number of international companies have also expressed interest in the rapidly growing Indian photovoltaics market, including US-based Signet Solar, which signed an MoU with the Tamil Nadu government to manufacture 300 MW of thin-film PV modules in a project worth an estimated $500 million. The firm will also build at least three plants (1 GW) in India over a 10 year period.

India reportedly requires 130,000MW of electricity on an annual basis. However, current peak demand exceeds the available supply by a shocking 14 per cent. In addition, at least 40 per cent of the country's electricity supply is lost in transmission due to theft. According to Professor Michael Kumar of Karunya University, solar energy can be tapped immediately to generate electricity. "The cells are easily available and you can convert the solar energy into electricity and use it for various appliances," said Kumar. X

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