Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd (MCL), a subsidiary of state-run Coal India Ltd, plans to invest Rs 4,650 crore to set up a state-of-art polysilicon manufacturing plant as part of its diversification activities. The plant will be set up near its mines in western Odisha.
Polyslicon is the raw material used to manufacture ingots which is then cut down to get wafers. Solar cells are prepared from these wafers and then the cells are assembled to get solar panels which are used in solar power plant to generate power.
There are only 4 to 5 polysilicon manufacturers in the world. Odisha will be the first state in the country to have polysilicon manufacturing unit that will produce high grade export quality polysilicon which will address the need of the entire solar industry value chain.
According to Mahanadi Coalfields Ltd’s director (finance), Kulamani Biswal, the company has a cash reserve of more than Rs 13,000 crore and realises its responsibility to diversify into the most clean form of energy, solar.
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