Que: What are the biggest durability and maintenance challenges facing India's solar sector today?

Ans: As India's solar capacity scales rapidly, developers are increasingly deploying projects across diverse geographies, including coastal regions, high-humidity zones, industrial corridors and areas exposed to extreme weather. These conditions can accelerate corrosion in module mounting structures, tracker tubes and related infrastructure, leading to higher maintenance requirements and potential reductions in asset life. Given that solar projects are designed to operate for 25 years or more, durability has become as important as installation speed and cost. The focus is now shifting towards infrastructure that can withstand environmental stresses over decades while maintaining structural integrity and performance. This is where advanced corrosion-resistant materials can play a significant role in reducing maintenance interventions and supporting long-term project reliability.

One of the unique advantages of Magnelis® in such applications is its self-healing effect on cut edges, scratches and perforations, which are common in solar mounting structures during fabrication, transportation and installation. This characteristic helps maintain corrosion protection even in areas where conventional coatings are typically more vulnerable, contributing to longer asset life and lower maintenance requirements.

Que: As solar developers focus on lowering project costs, how receptive is the market to premium materials that may have higher upfront costs but lower lifecycle expenses?

Ans: The market is becoming increasingly receptive to lifecycle-cost thinking. Developers, investors and asset owners are evaluating projects not only on initial capital expenditure but also on long-term performance, operational costs and asset reliability.

For large-scale solar projects, even small improvements in durability can translate into significant savings over the life of the asset. Materials that offer enhanced corrosion resistance and minimise maintenance interventions over the life of the project are increasingly being viewed as value enhancers rather than cost additions. Features such as the self-healing properties of Magnelis® on cut edges and perforations can help preserve structural integrity over time, supporting lower lifecycle costs and improved asset reliability.

As the sector matures and investors focus on long-term returns, we expect the adoption of higher-performance materials to increase, particularly for utility-scale projects in demanding operating environments.

At AM/NS India, we believe the conversation is gradually moving from lowest upfront cost to best lifetime value, which is a positive development for the sustainability and reliability of India's solar infrastructure.

Que: The company says more than 200,000 tonnes of Magnelis® have been used in projects representing around 6 GW of solar capacity. What share of the solar mounting structure market do advanced coated steel products currently represent?

Ans: The adoption of advanced coated steel solutions in India is still at an evolving stage, but the trend is clearly positive. While conventional galvanised products continue to account for a significant portion of the market, project developers are increasingly evaluating advanced zinc-aluminium-magnesium coated steels for applications where durability and lifecycle performance are critical.

The use of around 200,000 tonnes of Magnelis® in projects representing approximately 6 GW of solar capacity demonstrates the growing acceptance of these solutions within the renewable energy ecosystem. The availability of Magnelis® through a dedicated production line at Hazira further supports wider adoption by providing local access to advanced coated steel solutions, enabling faster deliveries and greater supply-chain certainty for solar projects.

As solar assets expand into more challenging environments and investors place greater emphasis on long-term returns, we expect advanced coated steels to gain a steadily increasing share of the solar mounting structure & tracker tube market in the coming years.

Que: What impact could the expansion of government schemes such as PM Surya Ghar and PM-KUSUM have on demand for higher-performance steel solutions?

Ans: Schemes such as PM Surya Ghar and PM-KUSUM are expected to significantly accelerate solar adoption across residential, agricultural and distributed energy segments. As deployment volumes increase, there will be greater focus on ensuring that solar infrastructure remains reliable and cost-effective throughout its operating life.

This creates an opportunity to promote greater awareness of the role that long-life, high-performance materials can play in improving asset durability and reducing maintenance requirements. The success of these programmes will depend not only on adding capacity but also on creating infrastructure that delivers consistent performance for decades.

As India's renewable energy ambitions continue to expand, we believe durability, resilience and lifecycle value will become increasingly important considerations across the solar value chain.

Que: How does the adoption of zinc-aluminium-magnesium coated steel compare in India versus more mature solar markets globally?

Ans: In several mature solar markets across Europe and other developed regions, zinc-aluminium-magnesium coated steel has already established itself as a preferred solution for corrosion-sensitive applications due to its superior durability and lower maintenance requirements.

India is still in the early stages of this transition, but adoption is growing steadily as developers gain greater awareness of lifecycle performance and as solar assets are expected to operate reliably for over 25 years. The industry's increasing focus on asset quality, bankability and long-term returns is encouraging the use of more advanced material solutions.

The local availability of Magnelis® through AM/NS India is an important step in accelerating this transition. Magnelis® is ArcelorMittal's patented zinc-aluminium-magnesium coated steel brand and is a globally proven solution for solar applications, having contributed to more than 50 GW of installed solar capacity worldwide. By bringing this technology to India, AM/NS India is providing solar developers, EPC companies and module mounting structure manufacturers access to a corrosion-resistant steel solution with a well-established global track record, along with improved supply reliability and reduced lead times through domestic manufacturing. We believe India has an opportunity to leapfrog directly towards high-performance infrastructure as it builds the next 150 GW to 200 GW of solar capacity, making durability a key pillar of the clean energy transition.

Que: The company aims to transition its Hazira facility to 100 percent renewable grid power by 2030. What investments will be required to achieve that target?

Ans: Achieving our ambition of transitioning Hazira towards 100 percent renewable grid power by 2030 will require significant investments in renewable energy infrastructure. A key pillar of this strategy is ArcelorMittal’s USD 2.1 billion investment in a 2.5 GW portfolio of hybrid solar and wind projects in India. Once fully operational, these projects are expected to supply around 35 percent of the electricity requirements of AM/NS India’s Hazira steelmaking operations while delivering annual CO₂ savings of approximately 4 million tonnes. We continue to evaluate renewable energy sourcing opportunities to further increase the share of clean energy in our power mix and support our long-term decarbonisation goals.

Que: The steel industry is under increasing pressure to reduce emissions. How do you expect demand for green steel to evolve in India over the next decade, particularly from renewable energy developers?

Ans: We expect demand for green steel to increase substantially over the next decade as sustainability considerations become increasingly important in procurement decisions across sectors, including renewable energy.

Renewable energy developers are already focused on reducing emissions associated with power generation. The natural next step will be to look more closely at embedded carbon across the supply chain, including construction materials used in solar and wind infrastructure. As carbon accounting frameworks evolve and sustainability disclosures become more widespread, the demand for lower-carbon steel products is likely to strengthen.

As India's first Green Steel-certified integrated steel producer, AM/NS India is advancing its decarbonisation roadmap, including targeting an emissions intensity of 1.8 tonnes of CO₂ per tonne of crude steel by FY2030. At the same time, significant investments in renewable energy are helping reduce the carbon footprint of our operations. We believe green steel will become an increasingly important differentiator for infrastructure projects seeking to meet both performance and sustainability objectives.