Solar industry wants its zone on Ajmer Road, not near Jodhpur

Jaipur: With Ajmer Road rapidly emerging as a cluster for solar panel manufacturing, industry leaders are urging RIICO to shift its focus from Kakani near Jodhpur and establish a dedicated industrial zone closer to Jaipur.Already, five solar panel manufacturers have begun operations along Ajmer Road, with several more scouting the area for new factories. The area accounts for most of the solar panel manufacturing (more than 13,000 MW capacity) in the state. About two years ago, RIICO had set up a dedicated industrial area in Kakani, citing proximity to Rajasthan's solar consumption base. Jodhpur, Jaisalmer, Bikaner, and Barmer host the majority of solar plants, and the rationale was that manufacturers would prefer to be near their end market. In fact, RIICO is also trying to address the issues of water there, while planning to bring down land rates in the zone. The call for the industrial zone near Ajmer road comes on the heels of the industry department pursuing a budget proposal to recognise solar panel manufacturing as an industrial activity which will make it eligible for investment incentives. A senior industries department official confirmed, "Our proposal to declare solar manufacturing as industry is pending with the govt and will be cleared soon. We are confident this policy will catalyse more investment in solar equipment manufacturing." The govt's 2024 policy had stopped treating solar manufacturing as an industry, limiting incentives. But with policy changes under consideration and companies waiting to set up units, a dedicated zone at the emerging hub is expected to add to the ecosystem and open opportunities for more investments. Industry representatives said that the ecosystem will greatly compliment balance-of-system (BoS) components industry. A dedicated zone will also attract manufacturers of BoS products that account for 30% of the project cost. Sunil Bansal, president of the Rajasthan Solar Association, emphasized the growing ecosystem along Ajmer Road: "Besides panels and inverters, balance-of-system components like mounting structures, wires, charge controllers, and combiner boxes comprise nearly 30% of project costs. Many manufacturers want to set up these units closer to the hub for ecosystem benefits."