CleanMax earmarks Rs 4,000 crore capex in FY26 for adding 1GW capacity

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Canadian investment firm Brookfield-backed renewable energy company CleanMax plans to spend about Rs 4,000 crore in India in FY26 amidst its plans to build 1GW of clean power every year, founder and managing director Kuldeep Jain told Moneycontrol in an interview recently.

The company caters to the lucrative commercial and industrial (C&I) sector, with 50 percent of its growth attributed to the rising demand from data centres and artificial intelligence (AI)-related industries.

Established in 2011, the company specialises in providing solar, wind, and hybrid energy solutions to businesses, helping them shift to sustainable energy sources.

It counts international companies like  Apple and Google as its clients. The company recently announced a partnership with Google  to develop a 125.4 megawatt (MW) renewable energy project in India, combining the solar capacity in Rajasthan and wind capacity in Karnataka.

Also read: Brookfield exploring $300 mn IPO of renewable energy company CleanMax

Expansion plans   

CleanMax plans to scale up its capacity by nearly 1 GW annually, according to Jain.  The 1,000- MW energy portfolio expansion plan will have 70 percent solar content and the rest would be wind projects.

" The construction of these assets have already started and it would be spread across states such as Gujarat, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, and Chhattisgarh," Jain added.  CleanMax currently owns and operates 2,000 MW capacity.

Last year, the company reported an operating profit of  Rs 803.5 crore in FY24, up from Rs 405.9 crore in FY23. In 2023, Brookfield became the controlling stakeholder, with a $360 million investment, comprising both primary and secondary funding. CleanMax had said that the strategic infusion will enable it to pursue its growth plans of becoming an ‘over 5 GW’ platform over the next 3-4 years.

" Till we did our deal (Brookfield), we had about Rs 1,200 crore of equity capital base and we added Rs 1,800 crore of equity capital to that. We have a lot of equity available for this growth. We are very well capitalised," Jain said.

Jain claimed that the company delivered an internal rate of return (IRR) of 18-21 percent to investors, like Warburg Pincus, IFC, and UK Climate Investments. UK Climate Investments, which held less than 20 percent stake, exited in April 2023. When asked about potential investor exits, including by Brookfield, Jain clarified that there are no immediate plans for new investor engagements or divestments in the foreseeable future.