Solar Gigafactory: Reliance Industries to commission first solar gigafactory by FY25

Reliance Industries Ltd., India’s most valuable companyplans to put its first Solar Gigafactory in the current fiscal year, as it revolves around a green path to achieve net zero carbon emissions of operations by 2035. In its largest annual report, the company said it aims to commission the first 20 GW solar PV manufacturing train by the end of fiscal year 2024-25 (April 2024 to March 2025) and scale up to 20 GW in a phased manner during 2026.

The solar gigafactory will include the manufacturing of Photovoltaic modulescells, wafers and ingots, polysilicon and glass in one place. The modules convert sunlight into electricity.

Industrialization is also being targeted. Production of sodium ion cells at MW level in 2025 and the first 50 MWh per year lithium battery cells pilot in 2026.

Reliance had announced plans in 2021 to invest $10 billion over three years to develop a new fuels business based on 100 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030. The plan involves setting up four gigafactories to manufacture renewable energy equipment, battery storage, fuel cells and hydrogen in Jamnagar, Gujarat.

“We have made significant progress in setting up factories that will be part of our integrated solar PV manufacturing,” the company said in the annual report. “New Energy will put its first cell and module manufacturing line into operation in fiscal year 2025.”

Solar panels manufactured in Jamnagar have obtained BIS certification. “In parallel, work is being done on renewable energy “Development has started and land has been allotted to Reliance in Gujarat,” he said. “Our aim is to become India’s largest renewable energy (RE) developer.” Apart from commissioning the first 20 GW solar PV cell and module manufacturing train, 2024-25 can also see industrialisation of sodium-ion cell production at MW level. Next year, the PV factory will be scaled up to 20 GW in a phased manner, and a battery gigafactory will be set up starting with a 50 MWh per annum lithium battery cell pilot project.

In FY27, it plans to set up a 50 GWh cell-to-pack manufacturing plant and will establish 100 GW of renewable energy capacity by 2030.

The 100GW target will propel the company to the forefront of global renewable energy ambitions, joining the likes of Enel, Iberdrola and oil players TotalEnergies and BP in the scale of planned capacity additions.

Reliance said fossil fuels have historically supplied India’s energy needs. “Structural inefficiencies combined with rising fossil fuel costs have resulted in expensive power for commercial and residential customers – the average tariff is Rs 10 per kWh (unit).”

Therefore, it is not viable for India to continue to rely on fossil fuels for its growth, he said, adding that use of fossil fuel-based energy increases dependence on imports and results in foreign exchange leakage.

“Stable and cost-effective green energy round the clock is the need of the hour. India needs to solve this problem to sustain its growth trajectory and achieve a GDP of $32 trillion by 2047,” he said.

Reliance said that over the next 12 months, it aims to bring new energy manufacturing facilities online, operate them efficiently and begin developing renewable energy generation projects.

“At the same time, we would develop the supply chain locally for self-sufficiency and reduce dependence on imports,” he added.

The company aims to partner with leading global climate product and technology companies and develop a business model that is flexible and adaptable to different technologies and future-proof to always have the lowest life cycle cost and best in class.

Reliance has secured multiple partnerships in the clean energy space, such as solar power and electric mobility, while pushing ahead with its oil and petrochemical plans. Jamnagar, the world’s largest integrated refinery complex, has two refineries — one focused on the domestic market and a newer one for exports only — that together can process low-grade crude and switch fuels based on prices.