(Yicai) April 3 -- India's list of approved solar panel makers, which came into effect on April 1, does not include any Chinese firms and will hold back their exports, according to industry insiders.

China’s solar panel exports to India will likely plunge, a source said. But there are new emerging PV markets around the world, so the overall impact may not be so significant, he added.

India imported USD3 billion of photovoltaic modules between 2021 and 2022, with 92 percent coming from China. India’s new and renewable energy ministry will enforce the compulsory registration of solar panel makers under the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers to reduce dependence on imports and make the country self-reliant, it said on Jan. 24. 

Government projects can only use modules, inverter modules, and products included in the ALMM and no longer use products from abroad, the ministry noted.

Chinese photovoltaic firms cannot sell their panels in India based on the new rules, the head of a second-tier panel plant said. With some countries, including the United States, Turkey, and India imposing sanctions on Chinese and Southeast Asian PV firms, industrial relocation is becoming inevitable, he noted.

The number of gigawatt-level markets worldwide was 32 last year compared with 17 in 2021, thanks to an increase in Europe and the Belt and Road Initiative markets, according to Wang Bohua, honorary chairman of the China PV Industry Association. The number will likely reach 53 by next year, Wang added.

Most leading integrated PV companies did not respond to Yicai about the impact of the new policy. However, one firm that inked a deal with India to supply modules above the GW level at the start of the year said it completed the order, adding that it has not received notice about future orders from the country.

China's exports of PV silicon wafers, cells, and panels surged by record 95 percent, 66 percent, and 38 percent, respectively, in the 12 months ended Dec. 31 from a year earlier, according to data from the CPIA. But by value they fell 5.4 percent to USD48.5 billion.

Editor: Martin Kadiev