Bharat Forge Invests Rs. 2.87 Crores in Avaada’s Solar Project in Maharashtra

Pune-based Bharat Forge Limited has announced an additional investment of Rs 2.87 crore to use the remaining 8.20 MW solar power from Avaada Satara MH Pvt Ltd (ASPL), on Friday. The investment has been done for the purchase of solar power from Avaada as a group captive user.

“We would like to inform you that we have agreed to use in the aggregate 40.70 Megawatt solar power from ASPL and had made an initial equity investment of Rs. 11.375 crores for use of 32.50 Megawatt solar power,” the Company notified in a release.

They further stated, “The Company has now agreed to use remaining 8.20 Megawatt solar power. Accordingly, the Company has made a further equity investment of Rs. 2.87 crores in ASPL. Post this investment the Company now holds 11 percent stake in ASPL.”

Both these investments are part of Bharat Forge’s commitment to purchase 40.7 MW of solar power from the ASPL. While the earlier equity investment stood for 32.5 MW of solar purchase, the latest accounts for the remaining 8.2 MW.

Avaada’s 72.75 MW open access solar project spread across 528 acres of land in Varkute Village, located in Maharashtra’s Satara district. Under India’s open access rules for commercial solar power, users are required to be stakeholders in the firm supplying solar power. Usually in proportion to the power they are expected to consume out of total capacity of the renewable energy plant. It’s a model that is expected to catch on increasingly, with firms such as Amplus, AMP energy and more setting up parks of sizes 50 MW or more in states like UP and elsewhere  to push solar there.