Looking back over more than 14 years in renewable energy, Vikas Bansal, CEO – International, GameChange Solar, reflects that around 2010–11 solar and wind were widely described as alternative sources of energy. In the present, they are no longer seen as fringe options but sit at the core of energy strategies in India and across the world. He notes that this shift—from alternative to core—represents the biggest change, with solar in particular growing far faster than most people expected.
India in the global context
Bansal views India’s domestic solar market as strong and progressing well. He observes that consistent, forward-looking policies continue to attract some of the best global capital, supporting the broader mission of greening electricity grids.
He also points to a larger opportunity beyond India’s in-house market: exporting Indian expertise in technology and manufacturing to the rest of the world. According to Bansal, this process is already underway. He explains that GameChange Solar, while headquartered in the US, has its second-largest base of people and technology in India. The company currently holds roughly 55–60% market share in solar trackers in India, a figure that continues to grow, while India also serves as a key hub for engineering and manufacturing.
Understanding solar trackers
Solar trackers are often still regarded as a new technology. Bansal explains their role by comparing them to a sunflower, which naturally turns from east to west following the sun through the day. In a similar way, trackers rotate on a single axis, moving from east to west to face the sun and generate more electricity as it moves across the sky.
Reliability over decades
While the concept appears simple, he emphasises that the real challenge lies in making such a system work reliably for 25 to 30 years, every single day. This long-term consistency is where technology and design matter most. Bansal underlines that this focus on reliability is where his company differentiates itself, noting that its trackers have already been operating in the field for about a decade.
Manufacturing the future
On the question of making manufacturing more cutting-edge, Bansal stresses that progress depends on deeper investment in research and development and greater automation. He observes that much of current manufacturing remains manual and is still in transition. While he is confident about execution—given India’s large pool of skilled and unskilled labour and entrepreneurial capacity—he believes manufacturing needs far more attention. He concludes that sustained automation and R&D investment across the industry are essential to staying at the cutting edge of technology.
