By Shalini, Director and Chief Operating Officer, P3C Technology and Solutions Private Limited
India’s solar PV sector has expanded significantly in recent years and is critical to the country’s renewable energy goals. However, there is a hidden challenge behind this growth: the gap between academic research and the industry. While both sides aim for development, they usually work in parallel rather than collaboratively. One of the most obvious differences is the shift in priorities. Universities and research institutions often focus on theory, innovation and paper publication. In contrast, industry is driven by cost, efficiency, commercialisation and customer demand. As a result, the majority of academic research does not go directly from the laboratory to the market. Promising ideas are routinely left in labs rather than becoming real-world applications.
Another concern is the undefined method for technology transfer. Many developed innovation ecosystems have strong collaborative labs, including incubation centres and licensing offices that generally help in transitioning ideas from lab research to market. In India, the solar segment is still in development. While such collaborations exist, they are not widespread to produce consistent results. Therefore, industries rarely implement intellectual breakthroughs on a large scale.
Another crucial concern is that many big solar enterprises in India are completely dependent on imported technology rather than forming local research partnerships. They are highly dependent on technology as well as machinery to build solar manufacturing lines. This is because importing is typically cheaper and less risky in the short term, but it stifles the growth of domestic innovation. This dependence is also one of the main reasons for the decreasing industry motivation to interact with academic institutions.
The role of funding patterns has also contributed to the current situation. Academic research is mostly funded by the government, which does not necessarily correspond with industrial requirements. Meanwhile, private investment in research and development is quite low. There is a particular lack of funding for the intermediary stages such as proof of concept, prototyping and testing where concepts are transformed into market-based products.
Another challenge is policies that impede collaboration even further. While the government has implemented various plans to promote solar energy, policies can often change, which causes uncertainty for businesses. Non-consistent long-term support for collaboration, academia and industry are hesitant to invest heavily in joint endeavours. Other than this, infrastructure is another concern. Advanced solar research demands access to top-tier labs, testing facilities and pilot manufacturing units. These resources are limited and are not always shared by industry and academia. This limitation slows down innovation.
Synergy between industry and academia is also a main constraint. Research institutions often work for long-term goals while industries or private companies look for quick results. This mismatch might make collaboration difficult when both parties expect different outcomes in distinct time periods.
Finally, closing the gap between academia and industry is critical for the future of India’s solar sector. Common goals (lab-to-market), better communication, proper funding structure and stable priorities can bring both parties together. If academics and industry collaborate and work together, India would be able to not only develop its solar capacity but also lay a solid foundation for its own solar technology.
One example that shows this shift towards lab-to-market and self-reliance is the work being done in next-generation solar technology such as perovskite PV. P3C Technology and Solutions started from the IIT BHU lab and is now scaling perovskite PV technology. This represents a new direction in India’s solar ecosystem. P3C’s approach closely aligns with the Make in India and Aatmnirbhar Bharat initiatives, as perovskite solar modules can be fully manufactured within the country without depending on imported components. This not only reduces supply chain risk but also opens doors for indigenous innovation and cost-effective production. Such efforts show how a small effort can boost research from lab to market and also how academia and industry collaboration can lead to practical, scalable solutions for India’s solar energy future.
