Shell's second solar investment this year, to pick 49% stake in Cleantech

Oil and Gas giant Shell has entered into an agreement to pick a 49% stake in Cleantech Solar, according to a statement from Cleantech on Wednesday. This is Shell’s second investment in the solar segment this year. 

“Shell Eastern Petroleum (Pte) Ltd (Shell) has signed an agreement to acquire a 49% interest in the company, with the possibility to increase its position after 2021,” Cleantech said in its statement. The company did not disclose the valuation of the deal.

According to people in the know, the deal is valued in the range of $ 75 million to $ 100 million.

“This investment will be Shell’s second major solar investment this year, giving Shell an immediate path to an established commercial and industrial platform in Southeast Asia and India," the statement said. The company expects to close the deal by January next year. 

"Asia is a significant commercial and industrial solar generation market for Shell and we are proud to work with Cleantech Solar as a leading solar company in the region,” said Marc van Gerven, Vice President of solar and storage, Shell.  Singapore headquartered Cleantech Solar owns and operates 120 solar power plants, representing over 200 megawatt (MW) of projects. 

In January this year, Shell agreed to acquire a 43.85 stake in Silicon Ranch Corp; a US based solar energy company. 

According to an India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) report, the solar sector in India received investments of over US$ 10 billion in 2017. In Indian government plans to achieve a target of 225 gigawatts (GW) of renewable power capacity, in which solar will play an important role. According to Central Electricity Authority (CEA) data, India’s installed solar capacity was at 24,021.66 MW as of September 2018.