An Interview with Prasad Chaporkar – Head International Business, Waaree Solar in India

An overview of Waaree Solar panels and the overall business scenario of the Indian solar industry by the head of Waaree Solar’s International Business – Mr. Prasad Chaporkar himself

1) Sneha: What is the biggest problem faced by the Indian manufacturers? Do you think the government should impose an anti-dumping duty on imports?

Prasad: The biggest problem faced by Indian Solar PV Panel manufacturers like us is the unavailability and cost of Indian manufactured Cells. Unfortunately, high efficiency and cost competitive cells are not available from the Indian manufacturers of Solar Cells. Also, there are no incentives from State or Central Government for establishing or expanding manufacturing facility for Solar PV Modules, which makes it tough to commit huge investments.

When it comes to anti-dumping duty, the government  needs to ensure that there is a level playing field for the Indian Solar Panel manufacturers. The prices of imported Modules should be the reflection of the actual cost and should not be subsidized one. Government can fix up a minimum import price.

2) Sneha: What is your strategy to compete with cheap Chinese manufactures? How will you cope up with major Chinese companies like Trina Solar and JA Solar, setting up large gigawatt scale factories in India?

Prasad: We are more worried about the poor quality of the modules, which are supplied at a cheaper price, which in the long run would probably affect the industry. Since we operate on a large scale and have a well-established supply chain, we are very competitive in terms of Prices and Quality as compared with any imported Solar PV Modules. We are an established player in the Indian market and are supplying our Panels since 2008. Customers know us and trust us since so many years. The overall size of the opportunity in India is too big. We are not concerned about the entry of overseas players in India.

3) Sneha: Why should people prefer Waaree solar panels over the international ones such as First Solar/ Sunpower?

Prasad: Anything supplied from outside India does not necessarily mean to have special benefit from the customers perspective. At the end of the day, customer expects value from his money. When buying from Waaree, the value the customer gets is unique. They are dealing with their home grown company having long term commitment for its customers and the overall Indian Solar industry. We are able to demonstrate the best and latest manufacturing technology and customers can even physically see and verify the input material that is being used in the production of solar panels that they are going to buy. Being a local player and an entity belonging to an 25 years old business house, customers are assured about the best support and after sales service. Apart from this, Waaree is constantly bringing in latest Technologies and Products and looking out for innovations and improvements in the entire value chain. Customer would prefer Waaree Solar Panels and more than 200 MW’s of Panels supplied by us till date bears the testimony to this.

Read more about Waaree Solar Panel review here.

4) Sneha: How much of your in-house panel production is used by your EPC business?

Prasad: More than 40% of in-house panel production is used  by our EPC business.

5) Sneha: What are the main risks that you see to India meeting its 100 GW target by 2022?

Prasad: The government of India has set up an ambitious target of 100 GW of solar power capacity by 2022. This is almost 30 times the existing solar set up in the country. Out of that, 40 GW is  supposed to come from the rooftop installations. In the past few months, at the state government level, particularly in Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Telangana, we have seen an uptrend  in  terms policy revision and implementation for the installation of rooftop  solar systems. The financial health of the off-takers, acquisition of land for mega size projects and the grid infrastructure can be the main risks.

6) Sneha: Even in India, there are a lot of manufacturers, how will you rate yourself on a scale of 1-10 and why?

Prasad: We are India’s number one solar panel manufacturer and solutions provider as per the leading research firm, Bridge to India report, published during September 2015.

7) Sneha: I think many retail buyers are still not aware of your brand. How do you plan to spread awareness about your brand?

Prasad: We have a strong network across the country with our branch offices  in many cities like Delhi, Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata, Lucknow, Pune etc . Also, we do participate in all the major solar exhibitions across India. Further to this, we also enhance our presence by appointing dealers and distributors from the Tier2 and the Tier 3 cities. We are constantly looking at increasing our brand awareness and reach and would keep on investing to augment it further. We also take help of digital and Social marketing tools to reach potential customers. We also have a toll free number : 1800 2121 321 to provide prompt assistance to our customers.

8) Sneha: Can you throw some light on your wholesale/ retail pricing in India and its future evolution going forward?

Prasad: When it comes to pricing, we are cost-effective and ensure maximum benefits to our customers. The  prices per Wp for Panels vary depending upon wattage, type of cells , specifications, quantity etc.  I think that the prices have already reached the bottom.