EverSource Capital and NIIF to Invest $330 Mn in CDC’s Ayana Renewable Power

This investment is a part of CDC’s commitment to invest a further $ 1.7 billion in India and neighbouring countries over the next three years.

EverSource Capital (a joint venture between Everstone Capital and Lightsource BP) and the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund of India (NIIF) have announced a partnership with UK-based Finance Institution CDC Group, to invest a cumulative $330 million (Rs 2341 crore) in its renewable energy platform, Ayana Renewable Power.

EverSource Capital manages the $700 million Green Growth Equity Fund (GGEF), which has NIIF and the UK government as anchor LPs.

Ayana was launched to develop utility-scale solar and wind generation projects across growth states in India. It is currently constructing 500 MW of solar generation capacity with a strong future pipeline of renewable energy opportunities. With a management team that has a track record of successful execution of renewable energy projects, Ayana is well placed to play an important role in India’s ambition to build 175 GW of renewable energy capacity.

CDC’s Head of Asia, Mr. Srini Nagarajan, said, “CDC’s commitment to climate change was key in the innovation of Ayana last year and its alignment with the global goals. We are delighted we achieved our early objective to attract fresh capital and we are proud to partner with NIIF and EverSource Capital. Their domestic expertise will further strengthen Ayana and support its mission in developing affordable and accessible renewable energy across India.”

This investment is a part of CDC’s commitment to invest a further $ 1.7 billion in India and neighbouring countries over the next three years. “Within infrastructure, we see further opportunities to provide investment to businesses operating within power generation, power transmission and distribution, transport, the gas midstream, and the water sector,” Nagarajan added.

Sujoy Bose, MD & CEO, NIIF, said, “The Indian renewable energy sector has seen strong traction underpinned by healthy capacity additions with globally competitive tariffs. We are pleased to be partnering with CDC and EverSource Capital and backing a strong management team with a successful track record of developing renewable energy in India. We look forward to working with our partners who bring complementary strengths and substantial capital to the platform.”

Dhanpal Jhaveri, CEO, EverSource Capital, said, “This partnership brings together like-minded institutional, climate focussed and experienced partners. EverSource has a deep understanding of renewables business with an extensive track record of scaling up world-class businesses in India and will provide strategic and operational value add to Ayana in building a high quality rapidly scalable utility-grade renewable energy business.”