India: ReNew Power raises additional $265 million of equity

ReNew Power Ventures Pvt. Ltd., one of India’s largest clean energy companies, today announced that it has raised new equity funding of $265 million from new and existing investors. The lead investor in this round is a subsidiary of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority (ADIA), with a commitment of $200 million for a significant minority stake in ReNew Power.

The new funds will be used for capital expenditure related to implementation of solar and wind projects. ReNew Power’s largest investor Goldman Sachs, a global investment bank and active investor in India, is participating in its fourth round of funding in the company through an additional $50 million commitment, taking its total investment in the company to $370 million.

Another existing investor, Global Environment Fund will be adding up to $15 million to its existing investment, taking its total investment to $35 million.

With this new round of funding, ReNew Power has raised a total equity of $655 million. The company currently has an asset base in excess of $1.5 billion and expects to finish the year with an asset base of over $2 billion.

Sumant Sinha, Founder Chairman and CEO, ReNew Power said, “This deal further positions ReNew as the preeminent company in the clean energy sector in India. We are at an inflection point where transformational use of natural resources will define our energy future. This fundraise comes at an exciting time for us as we enter a new phase of growth. The years ahead will define ReNew Power’s role in transforming how energy is produced, transmitted and distributed in this country.”

Ankur Sahu, Co-Head of private equity at Goldman Sachs in Asia, said “Since our initial investment in September 2011, ReNew Power has continued to demonstrate its leadership in this critical sector and expanded its clean energy portfolio. Goldman Sachs' additional investment in this fourth round of funding further verifies and symbolizes our continued conviction in the company’s strong future growth prospects and commitment to India's focus on clean energy."

Sridhar Narayan, Managing Director, Global Environment Fund India Advisors said, “We are delighted to participate again with world class partners investing in ReNew Power which has managed to consistently deliver scalable and optimal wind and solar projects across multiple states. Drawing on GEF’s experience investing in the renewable energy value chains across the Americas, Europe and Asia, we are looking forward to working with ReNew Power in building a world class energy company.”

Founded in early 2011 by Sumant Sinha, ReNew Power has more than 1,600 MW of commissioned and under-construction clean energy assets. Of this more than 700 MW assets are already commissioned. Currently, it operates in eight states (Gujarat, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh) across the country. Additionally, it has a development pipeline of more than 1GW solar, wind and solar rooftop projects.

Some of ReNew Power’s notable achievements:

• ReNew Power has the largest portfolio of commissioned (700 MW) and in construction assets (900 MW) in the clean energy space in India, with a large presence in both solar (600 MW commissioned and in construction) and wind (1,000 MW commissioned and in construction).
• In September 2015, the company installed and commissioned India’s tallest wind tower. It is a lattice/tubular tower (hybrid tower) of 120 m height, installed for the first time anywhere onshore in the world.
• Since its inception in FY 12, ReNew Power has maintained a market share of more than 10% of total installed wind capacity in the country.
• Also, in September 2015, it launched the first ever infrastructure bond issuance, credit enhanced by IIFCL, rated AA+.
• ReNew Power is the best capitalized renewable energy company in the country with Rs 4,000 cr of equity capital.
• The company is the largest capital raiser in debt markets in the renewable energy IPP sector in the last 3.5 years with over Rs 8,000 cr of debt sanctions.
• All ReNew Power projects are UNFCCC (United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change)  registered.
• Scheduling and Forecasting is being done for all ReNew projects, both wind and solar.
• Till date ReNew Power has constructed over 710 kms of rural roads and 1,100 km of transmission lines.
• Currently commissioned ReNew power projects have mitigated 2.5 million tons of CO2 emissions till date, and will mitigate more than 28 million tons of CO2 emissions in their lifetime.