Premier Energies Raises Rs 200 Cr via PE; Plans to Triple Capacity by 2023 with Rs 1200 Cr Investment

India’s one of the leading solar photovoltaic (PV) cells and modules manufacturer Premier Energies has raised Rs 200 crore through a Private Equity (PE) investment from GEF Capital Partners, a global PE manager focused on investing in climate solutions.
 
On the timing of investment, Surender Pal Singh, Chairman of Premier Energies, said that “we are excited to have a credible partner like GEF Capital on board and the timing of investment is critical for us to capitalise on the huge growth potential presented by the industry.”  
 
The raised money will be used as growth capital to enhance its solar cell and module manufacturing capacity, the Hyderabad-based company said.
 
Besides, it will also invest the equity capital in building additional cell and module manufacturing capacity of 2 GW each for the latest Monocrystalline PERC technology.
 
Additionally, the company is also planning for an investment of more than Rs 1,200 crore over the next 2 years by 2023.
 
Commenting on the development, Chiranjeev Saluja, Founder and Managing Director of Premier Energies, said “we are extremely upbeat about the progressive policy changes brought about by GOI in this sector. I am confident about meeting the growth expectations of our stakeholders, and at the same time we will continue to strive to improvise on sustainable sources of Clean Energy.”
 
“Premier has demonstrated a strong commitment to deploying the latest technology to address the challenges of climate change. GEF Capital is proud to partner with Premier Energies to build a world-class solar manufacturing business,” said Sridhar Narayan, Founder of GEF Capital and Managing Partner of the South Asia investment program.
 
Currently, Premier Energies is the second-largest integrated solar PV cell and module manufacturer in India and has completed 25 years of operations in 2020.
 
In July this year, the company has unveiled its new state-of-the-art solar cells and modules facility at E-City Hyderabad with a capacity of 750 MW each that produces MCCE textured multi-crystalline, Mono PERC and polycrystalline cells and modules.
 
The solar cell manufacturing sector has lately witnessed unprecedented interest from strategic investors led by progressive Government driven initiatives like Domestic Content Requirement (DCR) policy, Basic Customs Duty (BCD) and Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme under the Government’s Atmanirbhar initiative.
 
This investment from GEF Capital, an ESG focussed fund, gains significance in particular since this investment could be seen as a trendsetter amongst the private equity fraternity endorsing strong viability and robust growth potential in solar cell manufacturing.