A springboard into the Indian solar energy market

The setting for the first major conference held by the Indian solar energy industry couldn’t be better. GLASSPEX INDIA, which will once again be taking place from 12 - 14 January in the Bombay Exhibition Centre in Mumbai, already attracted almost 140 exhibitors and more than 3,000 visitors from around the world the first time it was held, in 2009. Many of the glass manufacturers and machine manufacturers attending the fair are closely linked to the solar energy industry and are often amongst the global players in this forward-looking market. Taking part in the Solar Industry Summit thus offers the unique opportunity to get an all-round impression of the current products on the solar energy market and the latest production technologies, all in one place, while meeting new contacts in one of the most important markets of the future.



Government puts its weight behind development in the solar energy market

India has already had one of the fastest growing economies in the world for a number of years. However, the economic growth is accompanied by rapid growth in the country’s energy demand. The Indian government recently established the “Jawaharlal Nehru National Solar Mission”, or “Solar Mission”, in order to achieve greater independence from fossil fuels such as coal, gas and oil. The aim of this project is to encourage energy production using solar power plants. By the year 2022, India aims to have an installed capacity of photovoltaic plants of 22,000 MWp, and to achieve this ambitious goal, the Indian government has given the matter top priority.



In future, India not only wants to use more electricity from solar power plants, it also wants to produce the necessary photovoltaic modules itself. An extensive range of incentives has been developed to encourage the establishment of production facilities. Research & development in the field of solar technology are to be pushed and the demand for solar energy is anticipated to grow steadily. The government aims to support the growth of the solar energy industry with incentives and financing concepts such as tax breaks and a simplified approval procedure. “Our vision is to make the economic development of India energy efficient”, the Indian Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, explained at the presentation of the Solar Mission, emphasising that the country’s economy, which is currently based on fossil fuels, needs to switch to renewable energy sources, with solar energy playing a key role in this.

Aiming to be the market leader

In addition to hoping to gain independence from imported raw materials and protect natural resources, Manmohan Singh is also pursuing another goal with his dedication to the solar energy industry. The establishment of the rapidly growing solar energy industry and its entire value chain, ranging from research and development and manufacturing to installation and maintenance of the plants will create thousands of secure jobs for the future. Just recently, the drastic fall in production costs of photovoltaic components has greatly boosted the competitiveness of this technology against conventional power generating technologies, and India knows that the conditions for solar technology on the domestic market are outstanding, which is why it has displayed such confidence in declaring its goal of becoming the world market leader in the production and use of solar technology.

An ideal platform for making new contacts

Against the backdrop of these ambitious plans for development, the “1st Solar Industry Summit India” on 13 January 2011 is especially significant. The main focus of the conference, apart from the development, financing and realisation of production facilities, will be the latest state-of-the-art production technologies and the international solar energy market as well as the latest quality assurance standards. In addition to investors and companies wishing to invest in solar power production technology in India, the key target groups of the conference include the planners of production facilities and the manufacturers of solar modules, solar cells, production components and accessories.

In view of the broad spectrum covered by the 200 delegates expected to take part in the conference, it will be an ideal platform, providing the opportunity to meet and talk experts in solar technology and decision- makers from around the world and for networking with potential business partners. High-quality speakers including politicians and representatives from trade associations as well as from the solar energy industry will give lectures detailing specific ways in which photovoltaic technology can be used more intensively in sun-kissed India and how new production facilities can be established. Solarpraxis AG and Messe Düsseldorf GmbH/Messe Düsseldorf India Pvt. Ltd., as the organisers of the conference, will contribute their many years of experience in the organisation of such events to boost the development of the highly promising Indian solar energy market.

The conference is integrated in GLASSPEX INDIA 2011. The trade fair for the glass industry is a satellite of glasstec Düsseldorf in Germany, the world’s largest trade fair for the glass industry. It is staged by Messe Düsseldorf in cooperation with its Indian subsidiary and is also supported by well-known associations such as the AIGMF (All India Glass Manufacturers' Federation) and the VDMA (Verband deutscher Maschinen- und Anlagenbau). GLASSPEX INDIA 2011 will be preceded by the Glass Performance Days (GPD), a globally recognised conference for glass specialists, which will also take place in the Bombay Exhibition Centre on 11 - 12 January and will also devote special attention to solar technology as well as glass architecture and the topic of flat glass.

For information on GLASSPEX INDIA, visit www.glasspex.com or contact at Mrs Gabriele Schreiber, SchreiberG@messe-duesseldorf.de, Tel.: +49 (0) 211 45 60-77 62 or Mr Heiko M. Stutzinger, StutzingerH@messe- duesseldorf.de, Tel.: +49 (0) 211 45 60-2 73 at Messe Düsseldorf.

Press contact: Eva Rugenstein/Desislava Angelova Tel.: +49/211/45 60 -240 Fax: +49/211/45 60 -8548 e-mail: RugensteinE@messe-duesseldorf.de e-mail: AngelovaD@messe-duesseldorf.de