In a major U-turn, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has temporarily withdrawn its latest order which specified the requirements for compulsory registration of solar module manufacturers in the country. The order titled “Approved Models and Manufacturers of Solar Photovoltaic Modules (Requirements for Compulsory Registration) Order, 2018,” was issued by the government as a step forward after the Quality Control Order issued last year. The order was aimed at reducing India’s dependence on solar imports and making it self-sufficient with an expansive manufacturing base covering solar wafers, cells, and modules. An MNRE official confirmed the temporary withdrawal of the order but refused to shed light on what led to the order being withdrawn. After the order was issued, an MNRE official had told Mercom, “This is the necessary step after issuing of the Quality Control Order last year. With this order, the aim is to ensure that we produce everything indigenously in India starting from polysilicon to ingots to wafers to cells and modules. This order is aimed at ensuring that India by 2021 becomes self-sufficient when it comes to the entire solar supply chain.” Now that the order has been withdrawn only after three days of being issued, it is puzzling to understand what could have led to the sudden move. Saumy is a senior staff reporter with MercomIndia.com covering business and energy news since 2016. Prior to Mercom, Saumy was a copy editor at Thomson Reuters. Saumy earned his Bachelors Degree in Journalism & Mass Communication from the Manipal Institute of Communication at Manipal University. More articles from Saumy Prateek.
India's Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has withdrawn an order that was designed to make the country's solar manufacturing industry self-sufficient by 2021 and reduce reliance on imports. The ministry said in a statement it had decided not to renew its earlier approval for the project after finding out about "technical issues" with the project. An MNRE official said the order's withdrawal was "temporary" but declined to reveal the reasoning behind the move.