KKR to Invest $400 Million in Sterlite Backed Serentica Renewables

Serentica Renewables Gets Capital Infusion of INR 3000 Cr from REC

Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR), a leading global investment firm, and Gurugram-based Serentica Renewables, a decarbonization platform that seeks to enable the energy transition by providing complex clean energy solutions for energy-intensive, hard-to-abate industries, have announced the signing of definitive agreements. Under the agreements, KKR will invest $400 million in the company. Standard Chartered Bank acted as the sole financial advisor to Serentica for this transaction.

The Sterlite Power backed Serentica’s launch builds on the favorable macroeconomic tailwinds behind India’s power and renewables sectors, as well as the government’s strong commitment to advancing India’s energy transition. In addition, Serentica looks to provide clean energy alternatives to the critical but hard-to-abate industrial sectors that continue to drive India’s development and economic growth.

Pratik Agarwal, Director of Serentica Renewables, said, “We are happy to have a like-minded strategic partner in KKR who believes in our model of sustainable development. The world is undergoing a clean energy transition and India is at the forefront of this effort with its ambitious target of 450GW by the year 2030. This investment will allow us to leap ahead in our vision of decarbonizing large energy intensive industries and help in reversing climate change. This transaction is amongst the largest industrial decarbonization investments in India to date and carries forward the global decarbonization agenda which is centre stage at COP27 (2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference).”

Hardik Shah, Partner at KKR, said, “Our investment in Serentica reflects KKR’s confidence in India’s renewables sector and our commitment to advancing the energy transition in India. Energy-intensive, heavy-industry companies play an important role in society but have traditionally faced more challenges in meeting energy needs sustainably. With Serentica, we look to support these companies in their decarbonization objectives. We are delighted to back Serentica through this latest strategic partnership and are excited to develop Serentica into a leading decabonization platform that can contribute meaningfully to the energy transition requirements that lie ahead of us.”

KKR makes its investment from its Asia Pacific Infrastructure strategy. The transaction in Serentica marks KKR’s latest investment in India and the renewables sector. Since 2011, KKR has deployed over $15 billion in equity globally to invest in renewable assets, such as solar and wind, which have an operational power generation capacity of 23 GW, as of December 31, 2021. In Asia Pacific, KKR sees renewables as core to its infrastructure strategy and seeks to invest behind the significant opportunities across the region.

Established in 2022, Serentica Renewables is 100% held by Twinstar Overseas Limited, which also owns controlling stakes in Sterlite Power Transmission Limited and Sterlite Technologies Ltd. Serentica Renewables looks to provide round-the-clock clean energy solutions enabling the transition of large-scale, energy-intensive industries to clean energy. The company is focused on industrial decarbonization, by making renewables the primary source of energy for the commercial and industrial segment which consumes more than 50% of the electricity generated in India. Serentica aims to provide assured renewable energy through a combination of solar, wind, energy storage and balancing solutions.

Currently, the company has entered into three long-term PPAs and is in the process of developing 1500 MW of solar and wind power projects across various states including Karnataka, Rajasthan, and Maharashtra. Serentica’s stated medium term goal is to install 5,000 MW of carbon-free generation capacity coupled with different storage technologies and supply over 16 billion units of clean energy annually and displace 20 million tonnes of CO2 emissions.

Earlier, in September, KKR revealed its investment plant worth $450 million in Hero Future Energies.