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Supply Chain Shortages and Inflation Delay Power Transmission Projects

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					</table>India’s power transmission sector is staring at supply chain shortages and higher procurement costs due to a high demand for transformers and other critical transmission components.
Stakeholders report a growing stress in the power system supply chain, with supply falling short of meeting demand for components such as transformers, control relay panels, tower parts, insulators, and gas-insulated switchgear (GIS). Longer lead times for procuring these components are leading to delays in transmission and power generation projects.
R K Tyagi, Chairman and Managing Director at Power Grid Corporation of India (<a href="https://www.powergrid.in/en/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">POWERGRID</a>), recently spoke at length on the transmission sector’s challenges arising from steep inflation. According to him, transformer costs alone have doubled in the last seven years.
“Transformers, which cost about ₹140 million (~$1.59 million), are now almost at ₹300 million (~$3.41 million). A GIS bay, which cost ₹60 million (~$683,946), now costs ₹150 million (~$1.7 million),” he told an analysts’ conference recently.
“We do not get bids from more than two equipment suppliers for each tender. Everybody’s hands are full,” said Tyagi.
To overcome the problem, POWERGRID procures enough transformers for two to three projects in advance.
A seller-market scenario is prevailing, with suppliers dictating prices. Tyagi said there is no option but to buy at the costs quoted by suppliers.
Industry leaders echoed these concerns at the recent <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/event/renewables-summit-2025" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mercom India Renewable Summit 2025</a>. Simarpreet Singh, CEO at <a href="https://hartek.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hartek Group</a>, pointed to the problem of the lack of timely availability of equipment. He said long equipment delivery timelines are now the main reasons for project delays.
“We are also facing challenges with equipment such as circuit breakers, isolators, and control relay panels. We must address the lack of quality manufacturers in the high-voltage and extra-high-voltage segments,” said Singh.
He stated that while significant attention has been given to the domestic manufacturing of solar modules, other components essential to the transmission and distribution ecosystem have not received adequate policy or investment focus.
Vaibhav Roongta, Chief Business Officer at <a href="https://rayspowerinfra.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Rays Power Infra</a>, drew attention to the growing lead times for critical high-voltage equipment, such as 220 kV and 400 kV switchyards, transformers, and isolators, which have now reached almost 20 months, exacerbating project delays.
The government has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/india-to-expand-power-transmission-network-to-meet-458-gw-demand-by-2032" target="_blank" rel="noopener">targeted</a> expanding India’s power transmission network to 648,000 circuit kilometers (ckm) in 2032 from 485,000 ckm in 2024. The plan is to meet a peak electricity demand of 458 GW by 2032. The demand-supply mismatch for critical transmission equipment could jeopardize this target if not addressed in time.
Transformer supply crunch is not a problem limited to India alone. A recent Wood Mackenzie report <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-struggles-with-transformer-supply-shortages" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> power transformers and distribution transformers in the U.S. are currently in a supply deficit of 30% and 6%, respectively, based on annual supply and demand estimates.

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					</table>Solar manufacturers can reduce costs and minimize quality defects in cells and modules, and balance of system components by using AI and automation.
A panel discussion titled ‘Technology Innovations Driving Efficiency, Profitability, and Competitiveness in Renewables,’ held on July 24, 2025, at the <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/event/renewables-summit-2025/register" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mercom India Renewables Summit</a> 2025, shed light on the technological developments in solar manufacturing including the use of AI.
Industry experts Vikram Kenjale, Vice President (India) at <a href="https://www.gamechangesolar.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">GameChange Solar</a>; Chetan Amrutkar, AVP of Sales and Marketing at GenX PV; and Sumit Kumar, Vice President of Operations (Manufacturing) and Technology at <a href="https://www.vikramsolar.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Vikram Solar</a> shared their insights on the topic.
Sishir Garemella, Head of International Business Development at <a href="https://scorecard.pvel.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Kiwa PVEL,</a> moderated the session.
Kenjale of GameChange Solar said that multiple factors contribute to module failures. “We follow IEC standards, and have third-party testing to confirm the compatibility of the modules. We do unbalanced testing of modules, wherein it tests real-time scenarios in the event of a wind/storm.”
He added that for their trackers, they have two sets of purlins; the exterior purlin acts as a shield for the interior array layout, which helps reduce module failures.
Amrutkar of GenX PV said that the advancements in solar module technology are impacting the growth of junction box manufacturing. The company has a 20 GW in-house manufacturing facility, and plans to reach 50 GW in two years.
“For TOPCon, we have 30 ampere junction boxes for G12 and G12, and we have 35 ampere junction boxes because the ICC/IMAX ratings are increasing,” added Amrutkar.
Amrutkar highlighted that automation is reducing errors in the manufacture of junction boxes.
“Earlier, the junction box was manually installed on the module and then soldered.  Now, the entire set of junction boxes is picked automatically and placed at the right locations. Simultaneously, the soldering, potting, and cap fixing happen automatically,” he added.
He said GenX PV had altered the junction box design to enable the movement of the automation arms.
Amrutkar noted that these measures have reduced GenX PV’s production costs and increased the efficiency and reliability of their products.
“We select the right raw materials and diodes for junction boxes. In imported junction boxes PV modules, the selected junction box rating and selected diode ratings are very close to the module rating. We are using much bigger diodes for the forward current. This minimizes overheating of the diode which is one of the key reasons failures in junction boxes,” he said.
He added that GenX PV also tests its components to 3 IEC standards to ensure its components can withstand extreme climatic conditions and performance conditions in the field.
Utilizing AI in Testing
Rayzon’s Barve said that for its 6 GW model manufacturing plant, it has been working on backward integration with aluminium extrusion, and an anodizing unit of 19,800 metric tons per annum.
He revealed that the company also has plans to set up a TOPCon cell line of 3.5 GW in the next financial year.
Barve said that AI is primarily being used for quality testing of solar modules and cells.
“We have a two-three-stage process in model manufacturing where inspection needs to happen on a very regular and stringent basis. Earlier, numerous checks, including EL imaging at the string and module level, and EL imaging post-lamination, were done manually. This has been fully automated. If there is any ambiguity, then an operator comes into the picture to take a final call,” he said.
With the integration of AI in the quality check process, there is now little possibility of human errors.
Barve said AI, coupled with machine learning and machine vision, is being utilized from the start of the manufacturing process through to the assembly lines. “If there is any problem with the cell, the cell gets rejected.”
He said newer manufacturing lines are built with AI integration, making the manufacturing process more accurate.
Upcoming Technology
Vikram Solar’s Kumar added that TOPCon is front frontrunner because its Levelized Cost of Energy (LCOE) is the lowest today.
“Irrespective of other technologies in the market, TOPCon holds around 70% of the market share. Today&#8217;s LCOE is with TOPCon&#8217;s future is definitely with TOPCon with the back contact. TOPCon G12R format will have a longer life than TOPCon with back contact. Perovskite in a tandem form, either with heterojunction or TOPCon, will be the front runner probably three years later from now,” added Kumar.
Talking about solar trackers, Kenjale highlighted how AI is making them weather-smart.
In terrains that require grading, the company inputs topography data from the ground, which is integrated with software to provide a master controller that can give commands to different nodes.
“It sends different commands to individual nodes so that trackers can adjust themselves to avoid the shadow effect on the previous or backward tables. On an annualized basis, it will give 5- 5.5% additional gains,” he said.
Kenjale added that on cloudy days, their solar trackers can be optimized to work without direct sunlight.
“We define a threshold, and when it reaches that threshold, the system maximizes the diffused sunlight that is coming on to the modules. Thereby, you can increase the energy gain. It can also give 6.5% additional gains,” added Kenjale.
Need for Green Skilling
The panelists highlighted the dearth of skilled labor to manufacture build solar components.
Barve said that the entire science and technology related to solar manufacturing needs to come to the academic side as soon as possible.
“We should look at engineering colleges with specialised branches for solar energy. We have also been a bit slow in terms of tapping our existing R&amp;D potential. We see a lot of brain drain due to this issue,” he said.
He said India is completely dependent on imports to establish manufacturing facilities. “With hundreds of gigawatts to be manufactured in India without equipment being made in India, our dependency remains high on imports,” Barve said.

AI-Integrated Manufacturing Will Boost Quality and Reliability of Solar Products

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