Chennai-based Raana Semiconductors has signed a preorder agreement with SWELECT HHV Solar Photovoltaics to supply CZ12 ingot-growing machines for its planned 1 GW ingot and wafer manufacturing facility in India.
The agreement marks a commercial expansion for Raana Semiconductors, which has primarily developed Czochralski (CZ) crystal-growth systems for research institutions, defence establishments and national laboratories.
Under the agreement, Raana Semiconductors will supply CZ12 ingot growers to SWELECT HHV Solar Photovoltaics Pvt Ltd (SHPV), a wholly owned subsidiary of SWELECT Energy Systems Ltd.
The machines will be deployed at SHPV’s proposed 1 GW ingot and wafer manufacturing facility.
The financial value of the agreement and the number of machines covered have not been disclosed.
The announcement describes the arrangement as a preorder agreement and does not identify it as a completed sale or a purchase order.
Raana Semiconductors to Support SWELECT’s Manufacturing Preparation
Apart from supplying the CZ12 ingot growers, Raana Semiconductors will support SWELECT HHV Solar Photovoltaics with process optimisation and process recipe development.
The company will also train SHPV’s team at its pilot facility to operate and maintain the ingot-growing machines while minimising equipment downtime.
“With this preparation, SHPV’s main factory will be operational from day one,” the company stated in its social media post.
Highlighting the importance of ingot manufacturing in the solar value chain, Raana Semiconductors has said, “Silicon ingot growth is the foundation of the solar value chain.
Crystal quality, process stability, equipment uptime and yield at this first step carry through to wafer quality and cell efficiency downstream.”
The company also highlighted the role of indigenous equipment in strengthening India’s domestic solar manufacturing ecosystem.
“By building this capability in India on indigenous equipment, we aim to strengthen domestic manufacturing and reduce dependence on imported equipment,” the company added.
What Are CZ12 Ingot Growers and Why Are They Important?
The CZ12 ingot growers being supplied by Raana Semiconductors are based on the Czochralski crystal-growth process, which is used to manufacture single-crystal silicon ingots.
A silicon ingot is a large block of single-crystal silicon that is subsequently sliced into thin wafers. These wafers serve as the base material for manufacturing solar cells.
In the Czochralski (CZ) process, a seed crystal is slowly pulled from molten silicon under controlled conditions. As the crystal is pulled, silicon solidifies around it, forming a larger single-crystal ingot.
An ingot-growing machine performs this process and plays an important role in determining the quality and consistency of the resulting silicon crystal.
For solar manufacturers, the quality of the ingot has implications for downstream wafer quality and solar cell efficiency.
Equipment performance, process stability, production yield and machine uptime are therefore important factors in commercial ingot manufacturing.
Raana Semiconductors’ CZ12 machines are being positioned for commercial-scale applications, marking an expansion beyond the company’s earlier research-oriented crystal-growth systems.
SWELECT’s ₹600 Crore Ingot and Wafer Manufacturing Ambition
The agreement comes as SWELECT Energy Systems advances its plans to enter India’s ingot and wafer manufacturing segment.
SWELECT HHV Solar Photovoltaics Pvt Ltd is the module-manufacturing arm of the SWELECT group. According to an October 2026 rating rationale published by Crisil Ratings, the company was incorporated in 2021 and operates manufacturing facilities in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu.
Earlier in October 2026, SWELECT Energy Systems Managing Director and Chief Executive Arulkumar Shanmugasundaram had publicly outlined the group’s plans to enter ingot and wafer manufacturing.
He said the company was targeting an investment of around ₹600 crore for the proposed manufacturing expansion.
At the time, Shanmugasundaram had indicated that SWELECT was in the initial stages of discussions with potential partners and that the project could come up in Tamil Nadu.
India’s ALMM Policy Push for Domestic Ingot and Wafer Manufacturing
The agreement between Raana Semiconductors and SWELECT also comes against the backdrop of policy measures aimed at strengthening domestic manufacturing across India’s solar supply chain.
In March 2026, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) expanded its Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) framework by introducing ALMM List-III for ingots and wafers.
The new list is scheduled to take effect from 1 June 2028.
According to MNRE, the expansion extends mandatory domestic sourcing requirements, already applicable to solar modules and cells under the existing ALMM framework, to ingots and wafers.
The ministry has also incorporated grandfathering provisions to protect projects that are already in the pipeline.
However, the initial ALMM List-III for wafers will be issued only after at least three independent manufacturing units, which are not under common ownership or control, achieve a combined manufacturing capacity of 15 GW.
Manufacturers seeking enlistment under ALMM List-III for wafers must also have equivalent ingot manufacturing capacity.
The policy framework is aimed at extending domestic manufacturing requirements further upstream in the solar value chain, covering the production of silicon ingots and wafers.
For companies such as SWELECT, planning to enter this segment, access to domestic equipment and manufacturing capabilities will be an important part of establishing production operations.
Raana Semiconductors Expands Beyond Research-Oriented Crystal-Growth Systems
Founded in 2015 by Rajasekar Elavarasan, who serves as its founder and CEO, Raana Semiconductors develops Czochralski crystal-growth systems.
The company’s website lists 44 deployed systems and identifies several institutional customers, including the Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), Indira Gandhi Centre for Atomic Research (IGCAR), Centre for Materials for Electronics Technology (C-MET), Raja Ramanna Centre for Advanced Technology (RRCAT) and India Optel Limited.
Raana Semiconductors also lists its incubation at AIC BARC Anushakti Foundation.
Until now, the company’s installed 2-inch, 4-inch and 6-inch crystal-growth machines have largely catered to research applications across defence, atomic energy and other national laboratories.
The company is now preparing to launch its first commercial-grade 12-inch CZ machine, designed for solar module manufacturers.
Raana Semiconductors Raises $3 Million Seed Funding
Raana Semiconductors has previously raised a seed funding round of US$3 million to support its business and technology development.
The funding round was then led by Equirus Innovatex Fund and Artha Venture Fund.
Other participants included IvyCap Ventures, PointOne Capital, CIIE Initiatives (IIMA Ventures) and angel investor Garimella Laxminarayana.
