GEF Capital Partners to invest Rs 200 crore in Hyderabad-based Premier Energies

GEF Capital Partners, a global private equity fund focused on financing climate solutions, has agreed to invest Rs 200 crore in Hyderabad-based Premier Energies in one of the first green-energy product companies in India. GEF was spun out of the US-based Global Environment Fund.

Premier, one of India’s leading solar photovoltaic cell and module manufacturing firms, will use the proceeds to triple its capacity from the current level, the company said. GEF is likely to invest this capital from its recently closed South Asia Growth Fund II (SAGF II). “We are planning an investment of around Rs 1,200 crore over the next two years.

This fund infusion will help us to significantly enhance our capacity,” said Chiranjeev Saluja, Founder and Managing Director, Premier Energies. “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.”

Centrum Capital Limited was the exclusive advisor to Premier Energies in this transaction. “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, co-founder of GEF Capital and Managing Partner of the South Asia investment program.

Premier will invest the equity capital to consolidate its presence by adding additional capacity of 2 GW cell manufacturing and 2 GW of module manufacturing. Based in Hyderabad, Premier Energies is currently the second largest integrated solar photovoltaic cell and module manufacturer in India. The company recently started a 750 MW solar cell and 750 MW solar module manufacturing facility, one of the largest in south India. Around $70 billion has been invested in India’s renewable energy space in the past seven years, power minister RK Singh said in June.