In a major push to deepen local value addition in the solar sector, the Government of India has announced an expansion of the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) framework to include solar ingots and wafers. The move is aimed at strengthening domestic manufacturing, cutting import reliance, and building a more resilient clean energy supply chain.
The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) on Saturday unveiled ALMM List-III, which specifically covers ingots and wafers. The new list will take effect from June 1, 2028. From that date, all solar power projects in the country, including those under net metering and open access categories, will be required to source wafers only from manufacturers featured on the ALMM List-III.
Announcing the decision on social media, Union Minister for New and Renewable Energy Pralhad Joshi called it a “decisive step” toward building a robust solar manufacturing ecosystem in India.
“The extension of ALMM to ingots and wafers will give a strong fillip to domestic production, improve supply chain resilience, reduce our dependence on imports, and ensure higher quality standards across the entire solar value chain,” Joshi said.
Under the revised provisions, any bids submitted after a specified cut-off date under the Electricity Act will have to mandatorily use wafers that comply with ALMM List-III.
To ensure adequate domestic capacity before the list comes into force, the Ministry said the first version of List-III will be published only after at least three independent manufacturers with a combined production capacity of 15 gigawatts become operational in India.
In addition, companies seeking to be included will also need to demonstrate equivalent ingot manufacturing capacity. This requirement, officials explained, is intended to promote upstream integration and prevent a situation where the country only assembles downstream products while remaining dependent on imported upstream components.
The government has built in safeguards for projects that are already in the pipeline. Through grandfathering provisions, existing projects will be allowed to proceed without having to comply with the new wafer mandate.
The Ministry also clarified that the existing Domestic Content Requirement (DCR) norms will continue unchanged. This means developers working under DCR tenders will still have to meet those separate domestic sourcing obligations.
The expansion of ALMM comes as India accelerates toward its target of 500 gigawatts of non-fossil fuel capacity by 2030. Policy makers say controlling more stages of the solar manufacturing process domestically will be critical to achieving that goal in a cost-effective and secure manner.
Industry analysts note that wafers and ingots represent a crucial upstream segment where India has so far had limited manufacturing presence. By mandating domestic sourcing from 2028, the government is signaling to investors that long-term demand will be anchored in locally made components.
Officials expect the policy to encourage new investments, technology transfer, and scale-up of production lines. It is also expected to create jobs and improve quality control across the value chain, from polysilicon to finished modules.
With this latest step, the government is reinforcing its broader vision of Atmanirbhar Bharat in clean energy. By bringing ingots and wafers under the ALMM umbrella, India is moving closer to having end-to-end domestic capability in solar manufacturing, a move seen as essential for both energy security and the country’s climate commitments.
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