ADB to Invest $50 Million in Avaada Energy Pvt Ltd

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has announced that it has signed an agreement to invest $50 million in Avaada Energy Pvt Ltd (AEPL) to support the company scale up photovoltaic solar energy generation capacity in India.

The investment will originate from ADB’s Ordinary Capital Resources and Leading Asia’s Private Sector Infrastructure Fund (LEAP).

“Supporting renewable energy capacity enhancement by way of debt and equity is a key focus area of ADB’s private sector strategy,” believed ADB principal investment specialist Mayank Choudhary.

The investment in Avaada will propel an optimistic signal to global investors to continue supporting the growth of renewable energy in India, he added.

AEPL develops solar energy projects in India, comprising utility-scale, rooftop, and off-grid projects. It has secured power purchase agreements of about 1,700 MW. With the current equity investment, the company is well sponsored to exceed a capacity of 2 GW, the statement held.

The project will add to the Indian government’s goal of increasing the share of renewable energy generation capacity from about 20 per cent in 2018 to 40 per cent by 2030, and help condense the country’s emission intensity of its GDP by 33-35 per cent by 2030, it further.

Manila-headquartered ADB thought that the investment in Avaada is part of its goal of providing cumulative climate finance of $80 billion from 2019 to 2030. In 2018, it made promises of new loans and grants amounting to $21.6 billion. The development bank has 68 member nations, of which 49 are from the Asia-Pacific. The Indian renewables energy sector has been appealing strong investor interest globally.