Tata Power Aims For 10-11 MW Daily Solar Production On High Efficiency, Fast Ramp-Up

With a bid to retaining its position as a key player in India's growing renewable energy sector, Tata Power Co. has ramped up its solar manufacturing capabilities.

“Our target is 10-11 MW of module production every day. We should have about 97% yield from this plant and the efficiency of these cells should be in the range of 23%,” said Praveer Sinha, chief executive officer and managing director of Tata Power. “I think we are very close to these targets; our module today is producing around 11 MW."

Emphasising it was "one of the fastest ramp-ups," Sinha credited the facility for the successful scaling. The plant’s daily output is expected to drive the company's future solar expansion.

Tata Power is also a leader in the rooftop solar market, with a current market share of 13%. “We are the biggest in the rooftop solar space. We have more than 600 channel partners, and we had a revenue of nearly Rs 1,700 crore last year," Sinha said.

Tata Power's solar rooftop segment is expected to see further growth, with the CEO forecasting a revenue of Rs 10,000 crore by 2030. This growth will be driven by government initiatives like the PM Suryadhar scheme, which aims to install solar rooftops on one crore homes.

Tata Power plans to install solar systems on approximately 30 lakh homes across four key states: Assam, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, and Odisha.

Sharing Tata Power’s capital expenditure plans, Sinha said, “We expect 50% of capex to be allocated towards renewables, with the balance going towards transmission, distribution, and existing generation projects, particularly hydro and pumped hydro projects.”

While the company expects an increase in debt levels over time, it maintains that its financial metrics will remain strong, ensuring sustainability and growth.

Tata Power recently commissioned a 4.3 GW solar module and cell manufacturing unit in Tamil Nadu. This unit, with potential to expand by an additional 4 GW, is primarily aimed at serving the domestic market, with no current plans to export. About 50% of the solar modules produced will be used for Tata Power’s own solar utility projects, with the remaining modules catering to third-party utility projects and solar rooftop installations, the CEO said.