Engie to Sell 74% Stake in India Solar Portfolio to Edelweiss

Engie has agreed to sell a 74% stake in 12 solar assets aggregating 813 MWp of operating capacity in India to the Edelweiss Infrastructure Yield Plus.

Engie and Edelweiss Infrastructure Yield Plus (EIYP) have announced a strategic partnership for the company’s solar assets in India. In line with both Engie’s and EIYP’s strategies, Engie has agreed to sell a 74 percent stake in 12 solar assets aggregating 813 MWp of operating capacity collectively to EIYP and Sekura Energy Limited, a portfolio company of EIYP.

The completion of this transaction, subject to the usual conditions associated with this type of operation, is expected to occur during the first half of 2020 and will allow ENGIE to reduce its net debt by more than EUR 400 million.

In India, as in many other countries, Engie uses all its engineering capabilities to design, finance and build renewable energy production capacity. Once this capacity is built, the firm partially disposes of its interest and retains the operation and maintenance of the asset. The value created by this Develop Build Share Operate (DBSO) strategy increases significantly the impact of solar and wind development potential in many countries.

This transaction marks the beginning of an ambitious strategic partnership between Engie and EIYP, aiming to expand a growing solar platform. The firm will maintain its leading industrial role by remaining in charge of the development, construction and operation of present and future solar plants.

Paulo Almirante, Engie executive vice-president and chief operating officer said “we are delighted to announce this strategic partnership with EIYP. This transaction allows us to accelerate the implementation of our strategic model in renewables, and to free up capital to keep up investing in the very dynamic Indian solar market.”

The firm has been present and active in India for over 40 years and employs around 1,000 people in clean power generation (centralised and decentralised), engineering, and energy services. The Group’s renewable capacity in the country exceeds 1.5 GW following the commissioning of two wind projects in Tamil Nadu and Gujarat and solar projects in Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh and Gujarat.