Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) – Will Indian Solar sector grow or fall

Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) –

Will Indian Solar sector grow or fall

 

On 12th May 2020 the term Atma Nirbhar Bharat or Self-Reliant India was coined by the Hon. Prime Minister Narendra ModiJi following this the PLI scheme was launched to encourage domestic manufacturing, reduce imports and generate employment in India.

 

Under the PLI scheme INR 4500 Crore is allocated to promote manufacturing of high efficiency solar PV modules in India thus, reducing the dependency on import in the Renewable Energy sector. It is to be noted that incentive under this scheme is provided to companies on incremental sales from products manufactured in domestic units. To safeguard the domestic manufacturers government has made it mandatory for the project developers to have a portion of installation through domestic manufacturers in order to avail the benefits of scheme, promoting the solar market in India

 

Adding to this there are possibilities of claim on production of solar cells & modules produced or made elsewhere so, MNRE issued an order for compulsory registration of manufacturers to “Approved Models & Manufacturers of Solar PV Modules” (ALMM)

 

For all the solar projects bidding after 10^th April 2021, under standard bidding guidelines have to procure modules from manufacturers mentioned in approved list.

 

There are possible positive and negative impact of this order on Indian solar market/manufacturers.

 

• Most importantly, this order can provide boost to the domestic solar manufacturers and encourage new players to enter in this market.
• But on the other hand, while bidding, cell and module manufacturers can be on an advantage as the Domestic Content Requirement (DCR) would be higher as compared to other module small manufacturers and thus they will have a disadvantage while filing the tender and would even filter out some developers even before filling the tender.
• The application fee for getting enlisted into ALMM is very high and some manufacturers might want to refrain from getting enlisted. But making it mandatory for developers to buy from enlisted vendors imposes an additional financial burden on manufacturers.
• Overlapping nature of ALMM and Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) may leave many stakeholders confused as, ALMM was established to ensure quality of solar products.
• This may impact project execution and project timelines. Creating a risk of pricing for project developers as planning for procurement of imported modules would be a challenge.

 

Above all, while efforts are being made to promote Indian market and encourage more players to enter into solar cells & module manufacturing, continuous improvements in policies can be expected.

 

Nikhil Samundre, founder of Solarmarts believes that once the ALMM is streamlined the quality of solar products will be ensured in the market. Are you looking forward to purchase best quality of solar products? Check our website www.solarmarts.in