Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: India added 34 GWdc (gigawatts direct current) of solar capacity in the first half of 2026 — 38 per cent above the H1 2025 levels — and the country is on track to record 50 GW, a new report showed on August 13.
India is set to commission more solar capacity in 2026 than in any year in its installation history, even as the policy driving that surge simultaneously creates a supply crunch that will push system prices significantly higher, according to new analysis from Wood Mackenzie.
India added 34 GWdc of solar capacity in the first half of 2026 as developers raced to commission projects ahead of the June deadline for the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers-II (ALMM-II).
Full-year additions are forecast to exceed 50 GWdc, surpassing the previous record of 49 GWdc set in 2025, according to the report.
“India’s ALMM-II mandate is a bold step toward building a fully integrated domestic solar supply chain, but cell manufacturing capacity has simply not kept pace with modules,” said Sureet Singh, Research Analyst, Wood Mackenzie.
The near-term cost impact is unavoidable, and developers will need to navigate a difficult transition period before prices stabilise, Singh added.
The accelerated build-out in the first half this year was further driven by the phased removal of waivers for inter-state transmission charges, which fell from 75 per cent to 50 per cent for projects commissioned from July 2026 onwards and are set to be phased out entirely after July 2028.
