Aditya Birla Nuvo joins the solar energy bandwagon

Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd has become the latest big corporate house to join the solar energy bandwagon in India. Yesterday, Aditya Birla Nuvo Ltd - a division of the Aditya Birla Group that is active in textiles and apparel, carbon black, fertilizers, insulators, mobile telephony and financial services – has decided to bid for the upcoming government as well private sector solar power projects. “The Board of Directors of the Company at its meeting held on July 9, 2015, inter alia approved the participation by the company in the bidding process of the upcoming central/state/private sector solar power projects,” said Aditya Birla Nuvo in a BSE filing. To begin with, the company is planning to participate in the upcoming bidding process for solar power projects in Telangana.
 
NDA government has set a goal of generating 100 GW of energy through solar by 2022 with an objective of making India a global leader in solar power. This is high ambitious target given the fact that the current installed solar power capacity in India about 3 GW. But, many big corporates such as JBM Group (a leading automobile component manufacturer), Bharti Enterprises, Gamesa (a wind energy major), Adani Group are drawing up plans to either expand or enter the solar energy market.
 
“With the renewed focus of the Indian government on clean energy and in line with the vision of the company to invest in the promising sectors, the company is planning a foray in the solar power business,” added Aditya Birla Nuvo in the filing. For the foray, the company will form a special purpose vehicle (SPV) or subsidiary, with a scope to induct other investors.