Smart Energy Finances: India indicates renewed energy priority as NGEL tries paying back $1.1bn renewable debt

February 24, 2023 Editor

$1.1 billion renewable debt financing - Smart Energy Finances Weekly — Image courtesy 123rf

This week’s edition of Smart Energy Finances places the spotlight on recent renewable commitments and loan intentions coming out of India.

The country’s G20 presidency announced enhanced focus on energy issues, providing immense investment opportunity for energy firms as NTPC Green Energy (NGEL) stated their intention of raising an immense loan of Rs9,000 crore ($1.1 billion) to repay debt obligations after 15 renewable businesses were acquired in April, 2022.

Also on the radar is a new study from Juniper Research, which has found that revenue from EV (Electric Vehicle) charging will exceed $300 billion globally by 2027.

And Elia Group, which consists of Belgian TSO Elia and Germany’s wing of TSO 50Hertz – has become one of several Belgian companies selected to be part of BEL ESG, a new stock market index directly linked to sustainability, launched by Euronext.

India’s G20 Presidency

According to reportage by ET EnergyWorld from the Economic Times, India’s G20 presidency has announced a renewed focus on renewables, hoping to spur much needed investment in the industry.

The announcement was made while inaugurating India Energy Week 2023 in Bengaluru, as Prime minister Modi mentioned how India’s energy demand has significantly increased and will reach 11% of the global demand as compared to 5% currently.

Renewable investment in the country will be vital for international net zero goals to be reached.

As mentioned by ET EnergyWorld, in India‘s 2023 budget, Rs35,000 crores ($4.2 billion) were allocated as priority capital investment toward the energy transition in line with the government’s stated 2070 net zero goals.

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$1.1 billion renewable debt for a past renewables acquisition

NTPC Green Energy (NGEL) plans to raise a loan of up to Rs9,000 crore for repaying debt obligations towards NTPC – a state-run power giant in India – against an acquisition of 15 renewable energy assets and their CAPEX from back in April, 2022.

According to the Press Trust of India (via Outlook India), a document released details the company’s intention.

“NGEL intends to raise fresh debt and repay outstanding liability of about Rs8,200 crore ($990.1 million) towards NTPC by 31 March 2023 along with applicable liability of interest cost. Additional funds to the tune of Rs800 crore ($96.6 million) would be required for additional debt liability based on the balance sheet as on the closing date and for balance CAPEX payments of projects which are yet to achieve full COD (Cash On Delivery),” said the official document.

Press Trust of India further reports that the document stated that the minimum amount of loan offered by banks shall be Rs1,000 crore ($120.7 million) and in multiples of Rs500 crore ($60.4 million) thereafter.

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EV charging to exceed $300 billion globally by 2027

Meanwhile, in the international scene, a new study from Juniper Research has found revenue from EV (Electric Vehicle) charging will exceed $300 billion globally by 2027; up from $66 billion in 2023.

The report, EV Charging: Key Opportunities, Regional Analysis & Market Forecasts 2023-2027, assessed leading EV charging vendors and evaluated them on a number of criteria, including depth and breadth of offerings, innovation and future prospects; providing extensive analysis of the competitive landscape in this dynamic market.

The Competitor Leaderboard ranked the three leading vendors as follows:

Siemens
ChargePoint
ABB

Research author Jordan Rookes explained further: “Siemens demonstrates an intricate knowledge of the market; targeting currently underserved segments, particularly public transport and fleets. Competing vendors must diversify their portfolio away from just home and public chargers and start targeting alternative high-growth market segments to maximise their market share.”

The research also predicts by 2027, the total number of plug-in vehicles will surpass 137 million globally; up from 49 million in 2023.

Elia joins sustainability stock market index

Over in Europe, Elia Group has become one of the Belgian companies selected to be part of BEL ESG, a new stock market index directly linked to sustainability, launched by Euronext, a pan-European stock exchange that offers trading and post-trade services.

The index is designed to meet an increasing market demand for improved visibility of sustainable investment tools. It will monitor 20 listed Brussels-based companies that adopt the best Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) practices.

The index identifies and follows 20 BEL 20 and BEL Mid companies and states itself as a “sustainable version of the national blue-chip index” that will now also follow shares listed on the Brussels stock market.

Designed in partnership with ‘Sustainalytics’, a research and ratings institutions for ESG data, the index aims to help investors identify companies that show a strong commitment to sustainable development, combining economic performance with ESG considerations. The makeup of the index will be revised on a quarterly basis.

Elia Group correlates their integration into the new index with the implementation of ActNow, their sustainability programme focusing on five key dimensions in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), namely: