EQ In Exclusive Conversation With Mr. Brijesh Prajapati – MD(India) at Sofar Solar
EQ In Exclusive Conversation With Mr. Brijesh Prajapati – MD(India) at Sofar Solar
# SOFARSOLAR Inverters First Obtaining BIS (String Inverter +Hybrid Inverter) and Completing Market Layout in India.
# Sofarsolar is part of the Sofar Group, a highly diversified company who are No.1 in the GPS business. They have been involved in the communications and renewable energy fields since 2007 and entered the PV inverter business in 2012 with the establishment of Sofarsolar, specializing in R&D, production, sales and service of grid-tied inverters. SOFAR is very pioneer group in GPS sector in china & we would like accept new challenges in the market. So we have started PV market business & doing successfully business globally. In order to support the current growth of the Indian PV market, SOFARSOLAR has recently taken steps to strengthen its business position in the country with a new office and leadership.
Looking to expand its footprint in the Indian PV market, SOFARSOLAR, added an office, warehouse, Service
staff and expanding team.
New versions of Inverters which are very compact in size make SOFARSOLAR differentiate from others.
SOFARSOLAR is positioned to play important and leading role in the Indian solar industry.
As a high – tech international corporation, SOFARSOLAR is equipped with leading technology of grid tied inverters. The R&D team of SOFARSOLAR has strong development capability. Around 100 experienced engineers are working with more than nine series products. And around 400 employees in factory increased our production capacity to 10GW annually
From day one our company has put quality as the most important criteria in our design, production and daily operations. Our international R&D team designed the product from bottom up. We hand-picked each component and we have drew every bit of the circuitry. Therefore we understand exactly how the device shall perform in every situation. We sourced all our electronic materials from U.S., Germany and Japan, such as Fairchild, Infineon, Texas instruments, Panasonic, Nichicon, Tamura, Microsemi, Amphenol, Sanyo. We are certainly not the cheapest inverters you can find in China. But if you consider quality is important, you will not regret to work with us..
New versions of Inverters which are very compact in size make SOFARSOLAR differentiate from others.
SOFARSOLAR is positioned to play an important and leading role in the Indian solar industry.Having global experience, innovative solutions, and dedication to developing a local presence, SOFARSOLAR is well poised to support the Indian PV market in its rapid growth. SOFARSOLAR recent move to strengthen its position in the Indian PV market with a local team signifies our commitment to the solar sector in India.
We are continuous growing company and we have variety of products like NEW ENERGY AUTOMOBILE (Supercharger) products & HYBRID INVERTER, STORAGE INVERTER & ON GRID string inverter developments in our basket.
To cater to the Indian Market we have established ‘’Sofarsolar India Pvt. Ltd’’ our Marketing and Service Center in Ahmedabad,Gujarat.
We are performing very good in India renewable market . SOFARSOLAR is a fastest growing product with good qualities, lesser service complain & prompt service solutions. No compromise in quality to make cheap product , no compromise in product component material, wide display is OUR KEY Features. Sofarsolar have good strong market in ROOFTOP Solar business & also in EPC Sector.
In price completive market SOFAR OFFERING 8 YEARS Warranty with GOOD Quality Products, LOCAL SALES-PROMPT SERVICE SUPPORT.
- How much Inverters have you supplied to India till now, what is the target/expectation in 2021-2022. Who are yout key clients and your key projects done
Since 2016 ,We have supplied more than 550Mw+ solar inverter systems in Indian market With Customer great support and trust on our products & team work. Also we have very long vision business road map in current & future sales growth. The company has a total manufacturing capacity of 10 GW with a Year on Year growth of more than 20 per cent. In a current year we have good business hope with our new innovative product range.
- Please share your Road Maps – Pricing, Technology etc…
To cater to the Indian Market we have established ‘’Sofarsolar India Pvt. Ltd’’ our Marketing and Service Centre in Ahmedabad,Gujarat. Our range of gird tied inverters include 1KW to 6KW in single and 3KW to 255KW in three phases, Support zero export solution . 3kW power storage inverters and 3-6kW hybrid inverters in Single Phase & 5-20kW hybrid inverters in Three Phase, Li-Ion Batteries.
#PRODUCT ROADMAP 2021:-
- Hybrid Inverter- 3kW/3.6kW/4kW/5kW/6kW (1 Phase)
- Hybrid Inverter- 8kW/10kW/12kW/15kW/20kW (3 Phase)
- AC Retrofitting Single phase 6kW
- String Inverter :-a) 80 kW (LV)/100 Kw (LV & HV both Option) /125kW (HV)/136kW (HV)
- b)12Kw/15Kw/17 kW/ 20kW/22kW/24kW (New Innovative series)
- New upcoming Rating:- 255kWwith 1500v DC
- Electrical Vehicle Charger (EV Charger)
- STORE BATTERY with Various sizes Battery Pack (BATTERY PACK)
- SOFAR AMASS Li-Ion Batteries. (Li-Ion Battery)
- What are your views on BIS and other tariff barriers
Yes, we strongly recommending to go with BIS Certified inverter. People will get certified quality products in the market but besides some lab agency seeking aim is earning money source from manufacturer means they are changing very high unbelievable charges. Also some strictly step needed from Govt./Govt. department MNRE against lab agencies. If Manufactures /OEM companies following BIS necessities rules regulation from Government then why not same action Then why are there no strict rules for Lab agencies. I think it should be compulsory BIS certification in govt. tender otherwise no meaning of BIS implementation and waste of time & money from Manufacturers/OEM companies. WITHOUT BIS CERTIFIED INVERTER NO SUBSIDIES APPLICABLE on Govt.tender.
In some state ,specially KARNATAKA Govt.agency BESCOM have a different very funny policy for brand approval in BESOCM Approved list. As per my discussion with BESCOM team they said we are not considering approval based on BIS Certification & IEC certification, means BIS Certification is no meaning for BESCOM. They said me our agency concern person will visit at manufacturing place & they will inspect then after they will see about BESCOM approval with BESCOM Fees/Charges & very important funny thing is manufacturer Company will pay their transportation, food, ,accommodation & other expenses. If manufacturing unit not in India then BESCOM person will visit out of India & all expenses pay by manufacturer (Air-ticket, Accommodation, transportation, food, other expenses) so I think BESCOM have no trust on IEC & BIS certification procedure. It’s same complain from other inverter companies also, requesting to Govt.agency need to prepare common policy for all states brand approval where is government agencies involved., specially for BIS Certification.
- What are your views on Inverters – Make in India
Well, very interesting question about local manufacturing setup. In a 2021 Year SOFARSOLAR is a very aggressive with new agenda for Business expansion with new innovative products & some up-gradation on current products. We have good installation in ROOFTOP Market & also last year business increased very good ,particularly in rooftop segment so it’s very easy to start local manufacturing with existing client data based & SOFARSOLAR Ready to take a any task related to Government policy. We are respecting our client & government Renewable organization so we will not take a backstep in future or will never compromise on products quality with ontime prompt service response. We will start locally manufacturing unit in a year 2021 and will give you update very soon on setup. We are very aggressive to develop our business on local manufacturing concept.
- Currently 10GW + Solar Projects are in the offing, Whats your plan to Capture this opportunity.
Yes, we are performing very good in India rooftop & commercial segment market . SOFARSOLAR is a fastest growing product with good qualities, lesser service complain ratio & prompt service solutions. No compromise in quality to make cheap product , no compromise in product case material, wide display. In Indian solar market expecting big projection in coming year after last years slowdown & uncertainties due to some policy & project, PPA. Coming year expected more than 10-12GW in rooftop & Medium – large scale projects.
The Government has up-scaled the target of renewable energy capacity to 175 GW by the year 2022 which includes 100 GW from solar, 60 GW from wind, 10 GW from bio-power and 5 GW from small hydropower. The government needs to be more concentrate on the end user’s requirement & support their ability for solar market development, net-metering confusion/clarification, subsidy provision.
BIS Certification proposal has been welcomed by the solar industry & It’s likely to also attract more investment & development from Domestic and international manufactures. It will be create more employment in the market & also come with MAKE IN INDIA Concepts.
In this year we will more focus in our new product series 255KW with 1500V system so we will try get more order with ontime delivery.
- What is the size of your company in terms of manufacturing capacities, growth chart, future expansion plans?
We have 10 GW manufacturing capabilities with automatic machinery plant & in-house designing facilities & production capacities .SOFAR Group was established in 2007, with its business involving communication, new energy, industrial park, investment. As a wholly-owned subsidiary of SOFAR group, SOFARSOLAR was established in 2013, specializing in the R & D, production, sales and service of photovoltaic inverter, energy storage inverter, charging pile and battery. The photovoltaic inverter power section covers 1-255kW, energy storage inverter power section covers 3-20kW, and battery contains high-voltage battery, and low-voltage battery, etc.
To guarantee the long-term sustainable profitability, SOFARSOLAR as supplier of series inverter, relies on its core competitive advantages and unique market strategic layout, which are:
- high level R & D team and R & D laboratory jointly built with universities. It ensures that the technical level of photovoltaic inverter and energy storage inverter is always at the forefront of the industry, continuously innovating products and providing rich selection space for global users.
- modern factory. SOFARSOLAR modern factory is located in Dongguan, covering an area of more than 40, 000 square meters, with a number of fully automated production lines, where there are six 100% inspection links from the component incoming to the product delivery to guarantee the product quality from the source, and modern laboratory and burn-in room to escort the product quality continuously.
- market localization. Plant and R & D center of SOFARSOLAR is located in China, with branches in India, Italy, Australia, Poland, Brazil and other countries, and its market covers more than 60 countries and regions in the world. In order to improve service level and response speed, SOFARSOLAR has set up localized services in many countries to achieve the localization of after-sales service, channel development and market publicity, so as to make the products more adaptable to the habits of local power grid and customers.
7.What are your plans for Manufacturing set up in India, the opportunities and challenges in manufacturing in India
Well, very interesting question about local manufacturer. If local manufacturer follow process as per required testing facility , production facilities & required manpower to do complete manufacturing task with proper testing/quality process then customer will get proper worth products as per invested coast. We are recommending to client don’t go on cheap prices & polycarbonate type of body with lesser durability life product available in market. In a now days if any local company providing cheap price product without complete process & assemble type of products so it will be not a long life system. So if client not aware about process so we requesting to them go with proper process & visit some manufacturing company in abroad or collect some online data or visit some online manufacturing setup videos & gain your knowledge to get proper product without any cheating in systems.
SOFARSOLAR will start very soon manufacturing setup locally as a “MAKE IN INDIA “ Concept.
