De-bottlenecking, structural changes needed for India's solar sector, says top solar PV manufacturer

India has the potential to absorb even 1,000 GW of installed solar power capacity, but structural changes, de-bottlenecking of processes and easy availability of low- cost finance are essential for rapid growth of the solar sector in the country, Gyanesh Chaudhary, Chairman and Managing Director of Vikram Solar, one of India's largest solar photovoltaic manufacturers, affirmed. In an interview with The Indian Express Chaudhary said that India would have to install "hundreds and hundreds" of GW of solar power in the coming decades to reach net-zero (carbon emissions) target (by 2070), and that it would not be possible at the current pace of solarisation. "In fact, 2070 is beyond our lifetime. I guess, we will have to reach net zero much sooner than that. And there is going to be a huge demand for electricity, mainly solar power. We are a growing nation with a very low per capita energy consumption level. It has to increase. We are just beginning to industrialise. The energy demand is going to shoot up rapidly. I think we should be looking at 1,000 GW of installed solar capacity itself. India would be able to absorb that much, may be more," Chaudhary stated.