Adani Green Energy has agreed to acquire rival Indian renewable energy company SB Energy Holdings (SB Energy India) from SoftBank Group (SBG) and Bharti Group for around $3.5bn.
The deal is said to be the largest of its kind in the Indian renewable energy industry.
Currently, SoftBank Group holds a stake of 80%, while Bharti Group has a 20% stake in SB Energy India.
Established in 2015, the renewable energy company has a total portfolio of 4.95GW spread across four Indian states. The portfolio features large scale utility assets with 84% solar capacity, at 4.18GW, 9% wind-solar hybrid capacity at 450MW, and 7% wind capacity at 324MW.
SB Energy India’s portfolio has an operational solar power capacity of 1.4GW and an additional 3.55GW which is under construction.
All the projects are underpinned by 25-year power purchasing agreements (PPAs) with Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), NTPC, NHPC, and other sovereign rated counterparties.
SoftBank Group representative director, corporate officer, chairman, and CEO Masayoshi Son said: “We are immensely proud of all that we have accomplished. As SBG continues our transition to a global investment holding company focused on accelerating the deployment of artificial intelligence, we believe now is the right time to bring in the Adani Group to help drive the next phase of SB Energy India’s growth.”
The acquisition will help Adani Green Energy reach total renewable capacity of 24.3GW and 4.9GW in operating renewable capacity. This includes 4.5GW of solar power capacity for which letter of award is expected to be issued.
Adani Group chairman Gautam Adani said: “This acquisition is another step towards the vision we stated in January 2020, wherein we laid out our plans to become the world’s largest solar player by 2025 and thereafter the world’s largest renewable company by 2030.
“India, without any doubt, has been one of the few nations that has accelerated its global commitment towards climate change and we intend to do our part to execute on the promises made.”
The completion of the deal is subject to receipt of customary approvals and meeting of other conditions.
Earlier this year, Adani Green Energy raised a debt package of $1.35bn with a group of international lenders for funding renewable projects in India.
