Solex Energy, an Indian company, will invest $1.5 billion in solar manufacturing and is looking to export the product to the US

Solex Energy, an Indian manufacturer of solar modules, will invest $1.5billion over the next five-years to expand its manufacturing and exports to the United States. A top executive said this on Wednesday.

Solex operates a module manufacturing facility of 4 gigawatts in Gujarat, a western state. It plans to increase its capacity to 10 GW. It also plans to establish 10GW of cell production and 2GW of ingots and wafers.

The company plans to raise money in phases and will be close to a $56,9 million fundraise by institutional investors within the next few weeks.

The U.S. market for solar products is the largest in the world, but only India offers cost-effective alternatives, according to Managing Director Chetan Shah, who cited high anti-dumping tariffs on Chinese products.

According to analysts and industry officials, the United States is responsible for 90% of India’s solar module exports.

Industry officials say that U.S. tariffs up to 50% on solar panels shipments from India and potential anti-dumping duties are expected to increase pressure next year, as the domestic project bidding slows.

Shah said that the company will continue to monitor developments in tariffs. However, it is confident that Solex, by manufacturing key components such as wafers, cells, and ingots domestically, can service the U.S. Market, thus ensuring an entirely non-Chinese supplier chain.

The company has formed a team that will study the market to find opportunities.

Solex announced on Wednesday it would partner with Germany's ISC Konstanz to conduct research, develop and collaborate in the field of solar cell manufacturing. The company is looking to diversify their technical dependency beyond China. Reporting by Sethuraman N.R.; editing by Sonia Cheema.

(source: Reuters)