Author

saurabh

As Tariff Bids Crash, Indian States Look To Renegotiate Tariff For Operational Solar Projects

written by saurabh

The trend of retrospective reduction in solar power tariffs seen in Europe few years back has now propped up in India.

Lawmakers of Indian state of Tamil Nadu recently revealed that they are negotiating with at least one solar project developer to reduce tariff. This could trigger a bad precedent across India as bids for new solar projects continue to decline rapidly.

The project in question in Tamil Nadu is no ordinary solar people. The government of Tamil Nadu is looking to get Adani Green Energy reduce tariff of its 648 megawatt project – the largest in India.

The Adani project, commissioned last year, gets paid Rs 7.01 (11.00¢) for every unit of electricity it feeds into the grid. That’s a massive premium to the current lowest tariff bid in the country, nearly three times as much.

Tamil Nadu recently issued a tender for 1.5 gigawatts solar power capacity and set a maximum tariff at Rs 4.00/kWh. It is clear that the government wants to check any ‘unjust’ profits that the developers may be getting due to advancements in technology and the share decline in module prices over the last several months.

A similar attempt was made in 2015 in the state of Gujarat. The projects in question at that time were among the first utility-scale solar power projects in India which predate even the National Solar Mission. The very first projects commissioned in Gujarat are still getting tariffs as high as Rs 12/kWh (19¢).

Power utilties in Gujarat approached the regulators to reduce tariffs of these operational projects but did not find any success. The matter was dragged into a court which ruled in favor of the developers.

Any retrospective reduction in tariffs will also send the wrong message to project developers which could put brakes on India’s march to become one of the largest solar power markets in the world. Any doubt in the developers’ mind could make them ask for new PPA templates which could elongate the regulatory procedures and delay project execution.

06/26/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

India Scraps Plan To Support Domestic Solar Equipment Manufacturers

written by saurabh

The Indian Finance Ministry has rejected a proposal by the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy for a financial support program from domestic solar equipment manufacturers.

Indian business daily Economic Times has reported that the Ministry of Finance has refused to approve a Rs 20,000 crore ($3.1 billion) relief package for the solar cell and module manufacturers. The Ministry of New & Renewable Energy had proposed this incentives program in order to help Indian companies compete with foreign manufacturers.

Under the proposed scheme, the government plans to have a manufacturing base of 5 GW by 2019. With the capital cost support the government hopes that these products will be able compete with cheaper modules from China and the United States.

Over the last few years, imported solar modules have gained an overwhelming share in India’s solar power market leading to a massive crash in the tariff bids. Several project developers have signed large deals with Chinese module manufacturers in order to make good on their low tariff bids.

According to the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy, India imported 161.5 million solar panels in financial year 2014–15. Of these, 113.5 million panels, or 70%, were imported from China. This marked a significant increase from the 65% share of Chinese modules in financial year 2013–14. Of the total 154.1 million panels imported that year, 100.4 million came from China.

The Indian government increased solar power capacity target by five times hoping that it would create a market bug enough for co-existance of domestic and foreign module suppliers. The government even set separate quotas for projects that could use only Indian-made modules. However, this policy did not conform with international trade regulations, the World Trade Organisation (WTO) found.

The Indian solar power sector is thriving well with project developers willing to set up projects at tariffs lower than those of coal-based power plants. The government, possibly rightly, does not see any reason to interfere and disrupt the market in any way. An additional $3 billion financial burden is certainly not something the government would like on its books.

06/26/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

Solar Energy Corp Of India Launches Fresh Tender For 750 Megawatts Solar

written by saurabh

Following the massive success of two recent auctions at the Bhadla solar power park in the state of Rajasthan, the Solar Energy Corporation of India has announced two new tenders for the expansion of the solar park.

Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) will offer 500 megawatts and 250 megawatts through two tenders at Bhadla solar power through the viability gap funding mode. Project developers to be offered the projects at a fixed tariff of Rs 3.93/kWh (6.1¢/kWh) but will have to bid for the capital cost support needed from the government.

Developers, however, will also be free to quote tariffs lower than the benchmark and opt not to take any capital cost support.

The tenders have been launched under the phase II batch IV of India’s National Solar Mission. The SECI had announced a target to auction 5 gigawatts capacity through the viability gap funding mode. It has so far auctioned 4.5 gigawatts capacity, of which power purchase agreement have been signed for 2.5 gigawatts. Through these tenders SECI would achieve its target.

The benchmark tariff offered by SECI is at 61% premium to the current lowest tariff for solar power projects. In May this year, ACME Cleantech Solutions secured a project at the Bhadla solar power park at Rs 2.44/kWh (3.8¢/kWh); no capital cost assistance was offered in that auction.

Thus, the higher tariff at offer, along with the capital cost assistance will act as a double bonanza for project developers. It would not be surprising if developers bids for lower tariff and no capital cost assistance.

We have seen extreme competition among project developers over the last few months in India. Tariff bids in India crashed 26% in a matter of just three months.

Acme Cleantech Solution (200 megawatts) and SB Cleantech (300 megawatts) were the winners in (Bhadla solar park) auction at a tariff of Rs 2.44/kWh and Rs 2.45/kWh (3.8¢/kWh), respectively. The massive jump in competition within two days is evident from the fact that Acme Cleantech Solutions reduced its bid from a losing one of Rs 3.36/kWh (5.2¢/kWh) in the 250 megawatts Bhadla auction to just Rs 2.44/kWh (3.8¢/kWh) for the 500 megawatts auction – decline of 27.4% in a matter of two days.

06/25/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

Bangladesh Lines Up 1.6 Gigawatts Solar Power Projects

written by saurabh

Bangladesh is planning to to set up some large-scale solar power projects, the biggest in its history, as it looks to diversify its energy mix and enhance self-sufficiency in the energy sector.

According to media reports, the Bangladesh Economic Zone Authority (BEZA) is planning to set up a solar zone which would house the country’s largest solar power project. BEZA is in talks with POWERCHINA to set up a solar power park with total capacity of 1 gigawatts. BEZA is expected to develop a fourth of the capacity while POWERCHINA would likely develop the balance.

BEZA is also reportedly planning to give away some land to the Bangladesh Power Division to set up 600 megawatts of solar power park.

Bangladesh has virtually no utility-scale solar power projects and its power sector is heavily skewed towards thermal power technologies. Additionally, the country is also dependent of electricity imports from neighbouring India.

The government has taken some steps to attract foreign investment in the solar power market but no major progress has been reported on those initiatives so far.

A subsidiary of SunEdison signed an agreement with the government of Bangladesh to set up a 200 megawatt solar project. The power purchase agreement for the project was signed by Southern Solar Power. The company will set up the project in partnership with a local firm — Midland Power — which will have a 20% equity stake in the project.

The status of this project remains unknown given the bankruptcy of the SunEdison. There have been no reports about any company replacing SunEdison in the partnership with Midland Power.

In 2015, SkyPower announced plans to build 2 GW of utility-scale solar energy over the next five years in Bangladesh, representing an investment of US $4.3 billion. The company also announced it will be gifting 1.5 million SkyPower Home solar kits to people of Bangladesh over the course of the next five years. “SkyPower’s $4.3 billion USD investment will create more than 42,000 total job years in Bangladesh and will include 500 MW of fabrication and assembly facilities,” said SkyPower Chief Commercial Officer, Charles Cohen.

The owner of India’s largest solar power project – Adani Green Energy – also recently expressed its intentions to set up large-scale solar power projects in Bangladesh. The company did not share any details but would likely be attracted by high feed-in tariffs available in Bangladesh.

These and the recent plans would be welcomed by environmentalists who have heavily criticised the Bangladesh government for its plans to set up a huge coal-based power plant in the environmentally critical Sundarbans. Bangladesh has announced plans to set up a 1,320 megawatt coal power plant in the world’s largest mangrove forest.

Image by vectoropenstock.com for Cleantechies

06/25/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

Santiago Metro To Meet 60% Energy Demand From Renewable Energy

written by saurabh

Cities continue to show swift progress and leadership towards large-scale adoption of renewable energy technologies even as some countries continue to deny the very need of sustainable growth.

Chile’s Santiago metro system will soon source as much as 60% of its energy requirement from renewable energy sources. The metro system, which serves 2.4 million people every day, will acquire 42% of its energy needs from a solar power project while an additional 18% will come from a wind energy project. Both projects are located in the Atacama Desert.

Metro de Santiago has signed 15-year power purchase agreements with 100 megawatt El Pelícano solar power project developed by California-based SunPower Corp and Total. The project is expected to supply 300 GWh of electricity to Metro de Santiago every year. A wind energy project located to the north of the SunPower solar project will also supply electricity to the metro system.

Long-term renewable energy PPAs not only provide low-cost and escalation-free electricity for Metro de Santiago but are also a boon to the project developers like SunPower in a highly competitive and developing market like Chile.

Solar power project developers in Chile had been struggling due to the sudden increase in capacity and constrained transmission infrastructure. Several developers were even forced to sell electricity for free after copper mines in the Atacama Desert shut during the recent phase of low demand globally.

Cities across the world are increasingly switching to renewable energy to power their metro systems. Different metro systems in India have already set up rooftop solar power systems or are planning to do so. Like Metro de Santiago, Delhi Metro has also entered in long-term power purchase agreement to source more than 200 megawatts of solar power capacity from one of the cheapest solar power projects in India.

Image Credit: Ariel Cruz Pizarro | CC-BY-SA 2.0

06/25/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

CleanMax Solar To Execute Rooftop Solar Projects For Chennai Metro

written by saurabh

India’s leading rooftop solar power EPC company has been selected to provide services to the Chennai Metro system in the state of Tamil Nadu.

CleanMax Solar will set up six megawatts rooftop solar power capacity atop stations and coach yard of Chennai Metro. Through these power systems Chennai shall join several other cities in India where metro systems have adopted solar power to meet a substantial share of their energy needs.

Chennai Metro shall use the same mode of project execution as the recently launched Kochi Metro. Opex or Resco model wherein Chennai Metro will not have to make any upfront investment. CleanMax Solar shall make the entire capital investment to set up the power systems. CleanMax and Chennai Metro would enter a long-term power purchase agreement.

After recovering the capital investment after few years, revenue from the sale of electricity to Chennai Metro will also be profit for CleanMax Solar. Chennai Metro, too, expects to save around Rs 1.5 crore (over $230,000) every year, and Rs 37.5 crore ($5.8 million) over a 25-year period.

All power systems are expected to be commissioned in 12 months while the two parties are expected to sign the power purchase agreement within few weeks.

A number of cities across India are planning metro systems and are likely to set up rooftop solar power systems. Some, like the Delhi Metro, may even enter PPAs with large-scale solar power projects to reduce energy costs and keep a check on cost to the commuters. Using renewable energy sources make perfect economic sense for public transportation projects as the energy costs are very low making them attractive to commuters.

06/25/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

India’s Kochi Subway System To Meet 25% Power Demand From Solar

written by saurabh

Kochi Metro, recently launched in the Indian state of Kerala, will get a quarter of its total electric supply from solar power systems.

This makes the Kochi Metro project unique as every station of the project and the coach maintenance yard will have rooftop solar power systems installed. Delhi Metro and Mumbai Metro are the other two prominent subway systems that use solar power.

All 22 stations of the Kochi Metro and coachyard will have rooftop solar power systems installed. The cumulative capacity of these system will be four megawatts and are likely to be partially operational by October this year.

The subway system signed a power purchase agreement for these rooftop systems at Rs 5.51/kWh, which is a highly competitive rate for rooftop projects.

More importantly Kochi Metro did not have to make any substantial upfront investment in the rooftop systems. The systems will be set up through RESCO (renewable energy service company) model wherein Hero Power Private Limited will invest Rs 27 crore. Kochi Metro also received 15% financial assistance from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy for the project.

Many subway systems in India have moved to rooftop solar power systems, including Delhi and Mumbai. These systems will likely make a substantial contribution to India’s rooftop solar power target.

Delhi Metro has gone a step further. It has signed a power purchase agreement with one of India’s cheapest solar power projects. It will procure around 200 megawatts power from the Rewa solar power park for 25 years at an average tariff of Rs 3.30/kWh (5.1¢/kWh). The tariff is cheaper than that of many thermal power projects in India.

06/23/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

Another Indian State Launches 500 Megawatt Wind Energy Tender

written by saurabh

The massive response to the country’s first-ever wind energy auction has prompted Indian states to switch from feed-in tariff mechanism to competitive auctions.

After Gujarat, now Tamil Nadu has also issued a tender to auction 500 megawatts of wind energy capacity. This marks a major shift in India’s wind energy market which is also the largest contributor to its renewable energy capacity with a share of 56%. Tamil Nadu leads all states in terms of installed wind energy capacity.

Tamil Nadu aims to allocate 500 megawatt wind energy capacity in order to secure enough electricity to meet its renewable purchase obligation wherein all power utilities are required to source a set minimum percentage of electricity from renewable energy projects. At the national level India targets share of renewable energy at 15% of total electricity consumption by March 2022.

The maximum bid that can be submitted by a project developer for the tender is Rs 3.46/kWh (5.4¢/kWh) the tariff discovered in the first-ever wind energy auction in India. The auction was organised by the Solar Energy Corporation of India earlier this year.

The tender was oversubscribed with total 13 developers submitted bids equivalent to 2.6 gigawatts in comparison to 1 gigawatts bids called for. Bids were received from major giants including Adani Power, Hero Future Energies, Renew Power and Inox Wind. Most of the developers i.e. 69% bid to set up projects in the state of Tamil Nadu.

Mytrah Energy, Green Infra, Inox Wind, Ostro Energy and Adani Group were the successful bidders grabbing a total of 1,050 megawatt capacity at a tariff of Rs 3.46/kWh.

The auction route would be highly beneficial to the power utility of Tamil Nadu. Like several other utilities in India Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Company (TANGEDCO) regularly faces financial issues and delays payments to project developers.

With the benchmark set at Rs 3.46/kWh (5.4¢/kWh) TANGEDCO will get at least 16.8% discount over the prevailing feed-in tariff in the state.

Already, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat has directed their power utilities not to sign power purchase agreements with wind energy project developers at feed-in tariffs. Gujarat recently floated a tender to acquire 500 megawatts wind energy.

The state tenders will complement the aggressive push by the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy at the central level.

The Solar Energy Corporation of India has announced that it will auction 4,000 megawatts of wind energy capacity this financial year, i.e. by March 2018. The agency shall offer this capacity to prospective project developers in multiple trenches. SECI is also expected to launch wind energy tenders of 5,000-6,000 megawatts every year till 2022.

India plans to have installed wind energy capacity of 60 gigawatts by March 2022, these auctions are will be aligned to achieve this goal. India’s current installed wind energy capacity stands at just over 32 gigawatts.

06/23/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

Indian State Of Gujarat Floats 1 Gigawatts Renewable Energy Tender

written by saurabh

Perhaps for the first time the Indian state of Gujarat will auction renewable energy projects under its state policy when it puts on the block 500 megawatt solar and wind energy capacity next month.

The Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (GUVNL) recently issued request for selection documents for 500 megawatt solar and 500 megawatt wind energy capacity. The capacity will be allocated through competitive auctions in mid-July. This will mark the first Gujarat will auction utility-scale solar power projects and the first time ever a state would auction wind energy capacity in India.

Gujarat is among the leading states in terms of operational solar and wind energy capacities, yet it has probably never auctioned any projects under the state policy.

Gujarat hosts India’s first and one of the largest solar power projects in the country – the Charanka solar power park. The state’s total installed solar power capacity stands at just over 1,250 megawatts. It is also among the leading states in terms of installed wind energy capacity at 5,339 megawatts.

Power generated from the projects allocated through the auctions will be sold to state-owned power utilities in the states for the fulfilment the of renewable purchase obligation.

Since Gujarat already has substantial renewable energy capacity operational it is very likely that these auctions could see highly competitive bids from project developers. Long-term PPAs with state-owned utilities would also give confidence to the bidders. Gujarat’s power utilities have been ranked among the best performing in the country by the central government’s Ministry of Power.

Public-sector companies will have 15% reserved capacity in solar as well as wind energy tenders. This could possibly mean that 75 megawatts of solar power capacity could be based on Indian-made panels.

06/23/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

China’s East Hope Partners India’s Adani For Solar Equipment Manufacturing

written by saurabh

One of China’s largest industrial groups East Hope has announced partnership with Indian conglomerate Adani to set up solar equipment manufacturing units in India’s western state of Gujarat.

Representatives of the two companies recently signed a memorandum of understanding at the Indian Consulate in Shanghai. As per the agreement, East Hope would invest a total of $300 million to develop various facilities include solar equipment manufacturing, chemicals, and aluminium.

The Adani Group has reportedly already set up the largest solar modules and cell manufacturing facility to manufacture solar modules and cells. According to a disclosure made to the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy earlier this year,

Mundra Solar, part of the the Adani Group, has commissioned 1,200 megawatts of solar cell and 1,200 megawatts of solar module production line. As on 31 December 2016, the production lines are ready but actual production is yet to begin.

Adani’s solar equipment manufacturing venture had first attracted SunEdison. The two companies had agreed to invest $4 billion in the production facilities which were to become the largest in India. However, the agreement became null following bankruptcy of SunEdison.

Adani was supposed to initiate production at the Mundra Solar facilities by March this year, however, it is unclear if the company has actually started manufacturing any cells or modules.

East Hope Group would possibly bring to the table what SunEdison lacked in terms of manufacturing and production expertise. The company already operates silicon smelters and would aid Adani in its manufacturing plans.

Adani plans to set up a manufacturing facility to produce 1000 MWp/yr of Silicon Ingots/ wafers, Silicon Solar Cells, Modules along with 3000 MWp support manufacturing facilities that includes EVA, Back-sheet, Glass, Junction box and Solar cell and string interconnect ribbon in 3 phases.

The third phase of of Adani’s manufacturing plan would include polysilicon production upto 10,000 tonnes.

Adani has extensive plans for expansion in the Indian solar power market. A group subsidiary already operates the largest solar power project in India and regularly participates in auctions for solar power projects across the country. Having a Chinese partner may also smoothen Adani’s entry into the Chinese market which is significantly larger than the Indian one.

06/23/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

Indian State Of Bihar Eyes $3 Billion In Renewable Energy Investments

written by saurabh

The state of Bihar has announced plans to attract investments in the renewable energy market to achieve the target set by the central government.

The state government of Bihar recently announced that it hopes to attract Rs 20,000 crore ($3.1 billion) in the next fives years to add more than 3 gigawatts renewable energy capacity. The target has been divided into 2,969 megawatts of solar, 244 megawatts of biomass and 220 megawatts of small hydro power capacity.

The technology-wise capacity targets announced by the Bihar government are in-line with the recommendations of the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy. The central government, through the ministry, had recommended technology-wise capacity targets for all states in order to achieve the cumulative capacity target of 175 gigawatts at the national level.

The solar power capacity targets have been calculated using 8% solar power consumption target for 2022. The overall renewable energy consumption target by 2022 is 15%.

Bihar is likely to push investments in the rooftop and distributed solar power market which would also benefit the farming sector. Bihar has had a record of being among the most under-developed states in India; it suffered substantially following the creation of the new state of Jharkhand. However, over the last few years it has been lapping some serious economic growth rate numbers.

Under the rural electrification program of the central government, almost 90% of the targeted villages had been electrified by 18 June 2017. Still, Bihar remains among the very few major states in the country that have not auctioned or even set up any large-scale solar power projects. So a huge potential for solar power in the state remains untapped.

06/22/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

India Can Add 300,000 Renewable Energy Jobs In Five Years, But Likely Won’t

written by saurabh

In its attempt to meet some of the most aggressive capacity addition targets, India could add around 300,000 new jobs in the renewable energy sector, a report by the Natural Resources Defense Council states.

Authors of the report ‘Greening India’s Workforce: Gearing Up For Expansion of Solar and Wind Power in India’, claim that more than 300,000 jobs would be created in India’s solar and wind energy sectors over the next five years. The authors also estimate that an additional 45,000 jobs can be created in the solar module manufacturing market.

The report notes that India plans to have an installed solar power capacity of 100 gigawatts and wind energy capacity of 60 gigawatts by March 2022. The government has set yearly capacity addition targets which are likely to fuel the jobs growth. The rooftop solar power market is expected to contribute the most to this jobs growth.

According to the authors of the reports, rooftop solar power projects have the highest employment coefficient or job-years per megawatt of 24.7 while ground-mounted solar power projects and wind energy projects have the values as 3.45 and 1.27, respectively.

Too Optimistic Projections

The authors have assumed that 60 gigawatts of ground-mounted and 40 gigawatts of rooftop solar power projects would be added by March 2022, meaning that India would achieve its set targets. This, however, looks highly unlikely.

India missed the capacity addition target for solar power capacity in 2016-17 by as much as 54%. Against a target of 12 gigawatts, only 5.5 gigawatt capacity was added between April 2016 and March 2017. The government now hopes to add 10 gigawatts capacity in 2017-18.

The government also seems to have bitten more than it could possibly chew with its rooftop capacity target of 40 gigawatts. But the government seems to have realised this and increased its utility-scale solar power capacity target. The Ministry of New & Renewable Energy doubled its target to set up large-scale solar power parks from 20 gigawatts to 40 gigawatts while keeping the overall target at 100 gigawatts. Understandably, this would mean that some part of the rooftop target would be met by solar power parks.

The estimated additional 45,000 jobs from the solar modules manufacturing sector seem a mirage in the current scheme of things. Domestic manufacturers are distressed due to low demand owning to the sharp fall in Chinese module prices. If India is to sustain the cheap solar tariffs it has seen in the recent months the government will have to incentivise the domestic manufacturers.

Officials of the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy themselves have acknowledged that the capacity targets are quite ambitious. Still, whatever India could add would definitely break records, nationally and globally. A significant number of jobs would be created, even if not as many as estimated in the report.

06/22/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

NEXTracker Achieves 1 Gigawatt Solar Tracker Sales In India

written by saurabh

The world’s leading solar power tracker company NEXTracker has achieved a major milestone in one of the world’s fastest growing solar power markets.

NEXTracker recently announced that it has now sold more than 1 gigawatts in solar trackers to projects in India.

“We are appreciative to be partnering on over 1 GW of solar power plants with many of India’s leading renewable energy firms,” stated NEXTracker CEO Dan Shugar. “We have designed the most flexible single-axis tracker to fit a wide range of project attributes in India such as property shape and size, terrain profile, voltage, and wind speed. We have significantly invested and grown our Hyderabad team, and have adapted our product for local conditions, supporting dozens of projects that are under present construction.”

NEXTracker has worked with some of the leading IPPs in India including Adani Green Energy, SkyPower, Suzlon Energy, CleanMax Solar, and ReNew Power Ventures. With Adani Green Energy, NEXTracker commissioned India’s largest tracker-equipped solar power project. While delivering trackers to Adani Green Energy’s Punjab-based project NEXTracker had indicated that it could receive more orders from the IPP.

Earlier this year, the company announced plans to set up a manufacturing facility in India to cater to the growing demand. The company has right reasons to expand manufacturing in the country which could soon become the third-largest solar power market in the world.

The company believes that the solar tracker market would increase from 7% in 2016 to 31% in 2021 with the massive push for large-scale project in India.

NEXTracker may receive support from the government under the Make In India program as well as special incentives planned for manufacturers of solar power modules and equipment. As per a draft plan discussed by the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy last year, the government is looking to offer direct subsidies to manufacturers, be it Indian or foreign, willing to set up manufacturing units in the country. The subsidies could be in the form interest subvention or cheaper loans.

GTM Research noted that NEXTracker remained the leading solar power tracker for a second consecutive year in 2016 and increased its global share in trackers market from 24% to 30%. NEXTracker also recently shipped trackers to the largest solar power project in the western hemisphere. The project, located in Northern Mexico, will have an installed capacity of 752 megawatts and is owned by a subsidiary of Enel Green Power.

06/22/2017 0 comment

Renewable Energy

Equis Energy Looking To Exit Indian Renewable Energy Market

written by saurabh

The largest independent renewable energy project developer Equis Energy maybe looking to exit one of the fastest growing renewable energy markets in the world.

According to media reports, Equis Energy is looking to sell around 700 megawatts of solar and wind energy capacity it owns in India. Indian business daily Economic Times reports that the Hero Future Energies, part of conglomerate Hero Group, is planning to buyout Equis’ assets.

According to a recent press release issued by Equis Energy, the company has financed 674 megawatts capacity with an additional 300 megawatt capacity under development. The company, through two subsidiaries, commissioned 130 megawatt solar power capacity in the state of Telangana. The company is expected to commission more utility-scale solar power projects over the next few months.

The two projects are expected to generate over 211,000 MWh of electricity every year offsetting more than 195,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions in the process. The company is expected to generate around $18 million in revenue every year from these two projects.

A statement issued by Equis Board Chairman David Russell did not give any indication about the possibility of company’s exit from the Indian market. “Equis has nearly a gigawatt (GW) of renewable energy in operation and under development in India and we are excited about the prospects for continued growth, delivering low-cost, clean energy to Indian consumers and businesses, as well as offering jobs to the community,” Russell said. The statement seemed pretty generic and has been repeated used in several India-related press releases.

However, the company has been making business moves in new markets within India. Earlier this month, Equis also signed an agreement with the government of Haryana to set up canal-top solar power projects. Under the agreement, Equis would invest $150 million to develop an undisclosed number or capacity of canal-top solar power projects.

06/22/2017 0 comment

Newer Posts

Older Posts