India's Adani Green to buy SoftBank-backed SB Energy in $3.5 billion deal
According to a statement, SB Energy India has a total renewable portfolio of 4,954 MW spread across four states in India.
Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL) on Wednesday said it has inked share purchase agreements with SoftBank Group (SBG) and Bharti Group for acquisition of 100 percent stake in SB Energy India for $ 3.5 billion (approximately Rs 25,500 crore).
The transaction marks the largest acquisition in the renewable energy sector in India.
AGEL signed agreements for the acquisition of SB Energy India interest from SBG (80 per cent) and Bharti Group (20 per cent), an AGEL statement said.
According to the statement, SB Energy India has a total renewable portfolio of 4,954 MW spread across four states in India.
The transaction values SB Energy India at an enterprise valuation of approximately $ 3.5 billion, it stated.
The target portfolio consists large scale utility assets with 84 percent solar capacity (4,180 MW), 9 percent wind-solar hybrid capacity (450 MW) and 7 percent wind capacity (324 MW).
The portfolio comprises of 1,400 MW operational solar power capacity and a further 3,554 MW is under construction. All projects have 25 year power purchase agreements (PPAs) with sovereign rated counterparties such as Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), NTPC and NHPC.
The operating assets forming part of the portfolio are primarily solar park based projects and have been built following best in class governance, project development, construction, and operations and maintenance practices, resulting in this being one of the highest quality renewable portfolios in the country.
With this acquisition, AGEL will achieve total renewable capacity of 24.3 GW and operating renewable capacity of 4.9 GW.
The closing of the transaction is subject to customary approvals and conditions.
Gautam Adani, Chairman, Adani Group, 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.
The renewable energy platform that we are building will lay the foundation for attracting several other global industries that are increasingly looking to reduce their carbon footprint (as well as lay the foundation for opening up adjacent platforms that include Hydrogen and Storage).
As SBG continues its transition to a global investment holding company focused on accelerating the deployment of artificial intelligence, it believes now is the right time to bring in the Adani Group to help drive the next phase of SB Energy India's growth, said Masayoshi Son, Representative Director, Corporate Officer, Chairman said CEO of SoftBank Group Corp.
Further, Sunil Bharti Mittal, Chairman, Bharti Enterprises, stated that Adani Group has an outstanding track record of building a green energy powerhouse which will get further acceleration with the combination of SB Energy into its fold.
Edited by Anju Narayanan