The factory will make polysilicon, ingots, wafers, cells and modules, according to Lanco, a rising star in India's white-hot energy sector. It will be built over several phases in a special tax-free economic zone in the Rajnandgaon district.

The first phase will cost 13.7bn rupees ($300m), and is expected to be operational by next year. When the entire factory is complete it will employ 8,000 workers, according to chairman Madhusudan Rao.

“The