Actis launches power biz after buying 49% stake in Shapoorji Pallonji unit

Actis announced Bridgin Power following its acquisition of a 49 per cent stake in the Shapoorji Pallonji group's 220-MW combined cycle gas turbine power plant in Bhola region of Bangladesh

Actis is launching a power generation business that will pursue gas-fired power projects in Southeast Asia, said the investor in sustainable infrastructure on Wednesday.

Actis announced Bridgin Power following its acquisition of a 49 per cent stake in the Shapoorji Pallonji (SP) group’s 220-megawatt (MW) combined cycle gas turbine power plant in the Bhola region of Bangladesh.

The SP group put the plant on sale in 2020 as part of a group debt-reduction exercise.

Bridgin Power will tap into a total commitment of $400 million of equity from the Actis Energy 5 Fund to set up at least 1.2 gigawatts (GW) of gas power capacity by 2028, it said. The Bhola plant is the first step in that direction.

“We’re excited to be launching a business spanning Southeast Asia, a region which has increasing power demand and where we can leverage Actis’ proven strategy of aggregating energy assets into a scalable regional platform, which enables a just and equitable energy transition," said Sanjiv Aggarwal, partner, energy infrastructure at Actis.

The Bhola plant has a 22-year power purchase agreement with Bangladesh Power Development Board and it achieved commissioning in June 2021. The project was initially financed by Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), Islamic Development Bank and IDCOL Bangladesh, who have now been replaced by a consortium comprising Bank of China, Mizuho and SocGen among others.

"The acquisition of the Bhola asset sets us on our path to create an energy platform of scale, using natural gas as a bridge to a sustainable and low carbon future," said Dennis Foo, Group Chief Executive Officer, Bridgin Power.

Bridgin is led by a management team based in Singapore; its target geographies include Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.