ACME plans solar capacity expansion through foreign investors

India’s ACME Solar Holdings is planning to draw foreign investors to fund its solar generation capacity expansion goals. Manoj K. Upadhyay, ACME founder and chairman, told the media that the firm aims to expand its solar capacity to 10 GW in the next five years at Rs 20,000 crore. In 2018 the company had aborted a public listing due to stock market turbulence and uncertainty over the nation’s energy policy. Currently, ACME has 2.9 GW of working capacity with a further 2 GW already funded and nearing completion. Upadhyay said that it is a capital intensive business so, they would try to draw many global investors. It will help them unlock capital for their new projects and prove what they are creating has value. The company is counting on India’s growing appeal as a renewable power market, with the world’s third-biggest emitter trying to roll out a record amount of wind and solar over the next decade and move away from fossil fuels. It is trying to raise about a quarter of the total investment by drawing global investors from private equity firms to pension funds and oil giants that are pouring billions of dollars into the country’s renewable firms. Previously, ACME locked-in investment contracts with Brookfield Renewable Partners LP for a 450MW project and Norway’s Scatec ASA for a 900MW plant. It will finance about three-quarters of the latest expansion project through loans and sell stakes or some projects outright for the remainder. It is also in talks with potential investors to sell a stake in the solar holding firm, which is controlled entirely by the founders, and a decision may come as early as this year, Upadhyay told the media. While many of the concerns associated with the aborted listing persist, mostly linked to the poor financial health of provincial electricity retailers, policies have somewhat shielded the renewable industry. Upadhyay said that the investors have now started to look at renewables differently from coal power. Additionally, he said that the firm would resume public listing projects once it becomes a 10 GW solar power firm. Additionally, ACME is moving beyond pure solar production to tap an expected boost in hydrogen demand. It aims to start construction in January, $800 million phase of a green hydrogen-to-green ammonia plant in Oman that is likely to have a total cost of $3.5 billion when completed in 2024 and will generate 2,400 tons a day of green ammonia for export. The company selected Oman for its proximity to export markets and high solar irradiation, features that have already seen the oil-dependent middle-eastern nation aim a mega green hydrogen project powered by 25 GW of renewable electricity. ACME’s plant will build upon the company’s experience with green ammonia and pilot green hydrogen plant in Rajasthan that will commence production this month, Upadhyay said. Upadhyay said that the Indian company has signed a term sheet with the buyer of its Omani product and anticipates signing the final agreement in about a month. Image Source Also read: ACME, ReNew win 500 MW solar project in Maharashtra Also read: ACME Solar enters deal with Brookfield Renewable for solar project