Kolkata: Solar cell manufacturer Jupiter International is setting up an ingot-wafer manufacturing plant in Nagpur, with an investment of Rs 3,000 crore. The work has already started, and the plant is likely to be fully operational in phases over the next 20 months, said company CEO Dhruv Sharma.Jupiter now imports wafers — thin slices of crystalline silicon that act as the fundamental semiconductor substrate for photovoltaic solar cells — from China. “The proposed plant will be of 3 GW annual capacity,” said Sharma.The company, which has been manufacturing solar cells since 2009, is on track to achieve a turnover of Rs 3,200 crore this fiscal. It has five solar cell manufacturing units — four in Himachal Pradesh and one in Odisha — and its capacity has gone up to 4.5 GW from 30 MW. The Himachal Pradesh unit came up with an investment of Rs 550 crore last year.“With the implementation of Pradhan Matri Surya Ghar Muft Bijli Yojana, the company is planning to partner with local module manufacturers to meet rising demand for domestic solar modules in Bengal,” said Sharma. “We will evaluate the forthcoming industrial policy, after which we will seriously consider our future expansion in Bengal,” he said.As for Jupiter’s IPO plan, Sharma stated the company was planning to come to the market by the first quarter of 2027. “However, things are still at the discussion stage, and the plans are expected to be finalised in the next couple of months,” he said.
