Financial Briefs: India and overseas

Serentica Renewables has signed definitive agreements with KKR for an additional investment of $250 million in the company. Earlier, in November 2022, Serentica Renewables secured an investment of $400 million from KKR. With this latest funding, the company aims to install 4,000 MW of renewable energy capacity. Serentica has recently signed new power delivery agreements to supply round-the-clock green energy to leading industrial customers in India. Cu­rr­en­tly, the company is in the process of developing solar and wind power projects across Karnataka, Rajasthan and Ma­harashtra. Once commissioned, the­se projects will supply 9 billion units of green energy every year through the in­terstate transmission network.

The Avaada Group has raised $1.07 billion from Brookfield Renewable to fund its green hydrogen and green ammonia business in the country as part of its on­going $1.3 billion fundraising plan. Br­ook­field Renewable, through its Brook­field Global Transition Fund, will be in­vesting up to $1 billion in Avaada Ener­gy, a subsidiary of the Avaada Group. In ad­dition, the Global Power Synergy Pub­lic Company will invest $68 million in Avaa­da Energy to meet its debt obligations and support growth. The Avaada Group is also in advanced discussions with potential investors to raise another $200 million.

The India Grid Trust (IndiGrid) has approved the acquisition of 100 per cent units of the Virescent Renewable Energy Trust (VRET) for an enterprise valuation of Rs 40 billion. IndiGrid's acquisition is subject to closing adjustments. The transaction followed a competitive bidding process and is subject to requisite regu­la­tory and unitholder approvals. Nota­b­ly, VRET is India's first and only renewable energy infrastructure investment trust. It comprises a portfolio of 16 operational solar projects under 14 special purpose vehicles, spanning across seve­ral states. The projects have a cumu­lati­ve capacity of 538 MWp.

REC Limited has exclusively listed its recently issued green bonds worth $750 million, under its Global Medium-Term Programme of $7 billion at the Gujarat International Finance Tec-City (GIFT) International Financial Services Centre (IFSC) stock exchanges. The bond issue wit­nessed an oversubscription of ap­pr­o­ximately 3.5 times from 161 investors, in­cluding active participation from quality accounts. Investors from across the globe participated in the issue with Asia Pacific accounting for 42 per cent; Europe, the Middle East and Africa representing 26 per cent; and the US 32 per cent. Over 87 per cent of the transaction in the issue has been allocated to fund ma­nagers, asset managers and insurance companies.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Tata Power-DDL have entered into an agreement to subscribe to non-converti­ble debentures worth Rs 1.5 billion to en­hance Delhi's power distribution th­ro­ugh grid enhancements. In addition, ADB is providing a $2 million grant to partially finance the purchase and integration of a pilot battery energy storage system (BESS). The senior secured fi­nancing will be used to commission a new 66/11 kV gr­id; augment and expand transformers, substations, feeder lines and switching stations; install smart meters; and replace obsolete electrical equipment and mete­rs. The 10 MWh BESS is the first grid-scale energy storage project at the distribution transformer level.

NLC India Limited's board has approved raising up to Rs 50 billion through the issuance of debentures in tranches during 2023-24. The company's board has also approved a proposal for the incorporation of a wholly owned subsidiary company to take over NLC's existing renewable energy assets.

The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved a grant worth $49.92 million for a 30 MW solar PV power plant with a storage facility of 15 MW/30 MWh in the town of Dekemhare in Eri­trea. The solar and storage project is ex­pected to increase the generation capa­city to 185 MW and grid energy to 365 GWh per year. Consequently, the sh­a­re of renewable energy in the natio­nal energy mix will rise from 3 per cent to 23 per cent. Of the total grant, $30.42 million is being allocated under the Tran­sition Support Facility, along with $19.5 million from the African Develop­ment Fund. The Government of Eritrea will be the beneficiary of the grant, and the Ministry of Energy and Mines will oversee the project's implementation. A part of the grant will also be allocated for technical assistance and capacity building to improve the operational performance of the grid.