Former US vice-president Al Gore-headed Generation Investment Management’s Just Climate LLP, and Singapore’s CapitaLand Investment Ltd are among entities exploring an acquisition of Radiance Renewables Pvt. Ltd, two people aware of the development said.
The sale of the Eversource Capital-backed company, which operates in the commercial and industrial (C&I) segment, may attract a potential equity value of about $300 million, the people said.
Non-binding offers (NBOs) are expected this month for the 100% stake sale of Radiance, which is backed by India’s quasi sovereign wealth fund National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) and the UK government’s Foreign, Commonwealth Development Organisation (FCDO). Rothschild & Co. is running the sale process for the platform, which has a 500 megawatts (MW) operating portfolio.
“The NBOs are expected shortly,” said one of the two people cited above, requesting anonymity.
CapitaLand Investment Ltd has S$133 billion of real estate assets under management, and S$90 billion of real estate funds under management. Earlier, it was looking at buying a controlling stake in rooftop solar power producer CleanMax Enviro Energy Solutions Pvt. Ltd, that was last year acquired by Brookfield Renewable for $360 million. London-headquartered Generation Investment Management LLP is one of the world’s largest sustainable investment firms and has $44 billion of assets under management and supervision.
Spokespersons for Eversource Capital, Rothschild & Co., Just Climate, CapitaLand Investment Ltd and British International Investment Plc declined comment. Queries emailed to an NIIF spokesperson on Tuesday evening remained unanswered till press time.
NIIF is sponsored and anchored by the Government of India, which holds 49% interest in it. It primarily focuses on investing in core infrastructure sectors such as transport, energy and digital. It manages over $4.3 billion of equity capital commitments across its three funds—Master Fund, Fund of Funds and Strategic Opportunities Fund.
British International Investment Plc is also a shareholder in Ayana Renewable Power, that is looking to sell a majority stake of as much as 100% in the green energy company, targeting an equity valuation of around $2 billion. Ayana’s shareholders are also seeking to raise an additional $400 million to finance the company’s growth, as reported by Mint earlier.
India’s C&I segment has been attracting strong investor interest given the regulatory landscape being supportive of the space with rules allowing large power users to source energy from the open market rather than the costlier grid. C&I projects are also shielded from risks such as power procurement curtailment by state-run power distribution firms. Also, the implementation of Time of Day (ToD) tariff for large C&I category consumers by State Electricity Regulatory Commissions (SERCs) has helped sustain investor’s interest and deal activity in the space as reported by Mint earlier.
Investor interest in India’s C&I space remains high, thanks to opportunities in the country’s rapid green energy transition trajectory. In the latest case, Noida-headquartered INOXGFL Group is planning to sell a majority stake in its C&I business. The company has mandated EY for the sale process, for a deal having a potential equity value of around $200 million. Also, Serentica Renewables, promoted by Sterlite Power, is planning to sell a minority stake to raise around $300 million and to appoint a sell-side banker to run the process.
In addition, there is significant interest to acquire Macquarie Asset Management’s Green Investment Group platform Vibrant Energy that has a 1.5 GW portfolio in the C&I sector. Meanwhile, Sanjeev Aggarwal, founder and chairman of Hexa Climate Solutions, has set up Hexa Climate Solutions along with I Squared Capital, wherein the New York-based private equity fund will invest around $500 million in the company that will cater to C&I sector.
There are multiple green energy deals also in the works including Azure Power Global Ltd, India’s first renewable energy company to have listed in the US, exploring a possible stake sale to a strategic partner or even a complete sale of the business. Also, Rahul Munjal-led Hero Future Energies Pvt. Ltd is looking to hire JP Morgan for a pre-initial public offering (IPO) fundraising for the deal expected to have an equity value of around $200 million. In addition, Italy’ Enel Group is looking to sell its entire India renewable business and has hired HSBC for the sale of its portfolio in a deal having an equity value of around $300 million. Also, Shell Plc has mandated Ambit Group to conduct a valuation exercise to sell a minority stake in the operational assets of Sprng Energy group. Shell acquired Sprng Energy in 2022 from Actis Llp at an enterprise value of $1.55 billion.
