By opening a production line in India, ABB has expanded the production of its solar inverters to support the rapidly growing local photovoltaic (PV) market. The first orders from new production line have been delivered already and over 200 megawatt (mw) of orders is booked. The new production line for ABB’s central inverter PVS800 product range was opened at the ABB facilities in Bangalore at the end of 2012.

The production capacity of the line is more than 500 mw annually. Due to the industrial design of the inverters, which is optimised for manufacturability, possible production line extensions can be considered quickly and easily according to market needs. The Indian PV market is one of the most rapidly growing solar power markets in the world.

The long-term commitment of the Indian government to developing a sound and healthy PV market makes it reasonable for ABB to expand production. With this new production facility we can support our customers in India with even more rapid delivery times and provide faster support for varying project needs, says Antti Suontausta, ABB’s global product group manager for renewable energy power converters.

On-time execution and delivery of projects is vitally important for customers, especially now when the market is booming, he said. The new production line already has over 200 mw of orders, with the first inverters being delivered to customers before the end of 2012, says KN Sreevatsa, the local business unit manager for ABB Power Conversion in India.