ReNew Power Ties Up $1.1 Billion Loan for 1.3 GW Round-the-Clock Renewable Power Project

The project comprises 900 MW of wind farms, 400 MW of solar projects, and 100 MWh of battery storage systems

thumbnail

India-based independent power producer ReNew Power announced a partnership with twelve international lenders for what is deemed to be the largest External Commercial Borrowings (ECB) project finance loan totaling $1.1 billion in India’s renewables sector for any single project.

Led by Netherlands-based Dutch multinational bank Rabobank, the loan has been tied through the creation of a special purpose vehicle (SPV) and will be used for ReNew’s hybrid round-the-clock (RTC) battery-enabled renewable project.

The company aims to expand its total renewable portfolio by availing the loan. The interest rate, after hedging, is expected to be lower than ReNew’s current average cost of debt on its balance sheet.

The RTC project will supply day and night power and compete against the baseload of fossil-fuel energy providers, such as coal. In April 2022, global trading and investment firm Mitsui & Co announced the acquisition of a 49% stake in ReNew Power’s round-the-clock utility-scale renewable energy project comprising 900 MW of three wind farms and a 400 MW solar project with 100 MWh battery storage capacity.

The project will provide power to SECI at the rate of ₹2.90/(~$ 0.038)/kWh to begin with, which will increase 3% annually for 15 years and then stabilize for the remaining 10 years of the 25-year PPA.

ReNew’s subsidiary ReNew Surya Roshni will develop the RTC hybrid project across Rajasthan, Maharashtra, and Karnataka.

ReNew’s Founder, and CEO Sumant Sinha said, “This loan — the single-largest project finance in India’s renewable sector— highlights the interest of global lenders in ReNew as it helps spearhead India’s historic clean energy shift and shows its continued ability to access financing at much lower rates than several years ago, despite the current volatility in the currency markets and a rising interest rate environment.”

Recently, ReNew Power became the first Indian clean energy company to refinance its 2024 maturity dollar-denominated bonds with amortizing project loans from an Indian non-banking financial company. The ECB loan follows ReNew’s refinancing measures.

RELATED POSTS