- Premier Energies Limited is going the IPO way to raise funds for its manufacturing expansion
- It aims to raise INR 15 billion through the IPO to finance a TOPCon solar cell and module fab in Telangana
- IREDA has already sanctioned a loan for the company to part-finance this project
Indian solar PV module manufacturer Premier Energies Limited plans to go public with an initial public offering (IPO) to fund the establishment of 4 GW each of TOPCon cell and module manufacturing facility in Hyderabad, Telangana.
It has filed a draft red herring prospectus (DRHP) with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) to offer up to 28,200,000 equity shares, each with a face value of INR 1. Investors that are selling their equity shares are the company’s promoter Chiranjeev Singh Saluja, South Asia Growth Fund II Holding LLC and South Asia EBT Trust.
Out of the expected fundraising of INR 15 billion ($180 million), the management plans to invest INR 11.68 billion ($140 million) in manufacturing expansion and the remaining for general corporate purposes.
In February 2024, Premier says the Indian Renewable Energy Development Agency Limited (IREDA) sanctioned INR 22.25 billion ($267 million) loan to its subsidiary Premier Energies Global Environment Private Limited (PEGEPL) to part-finance the Telangana fab.
The proposed factory is planned to be located at the industrial park in Ranga Reddy district of Telangana on 75 acres, using Chinese production equipment.
Premier says as of March 31, 2024, it was India’s 2nd largest integrated solar cell and module manufacturer and the country’s largest solar cell manufacturer, with 2 GW cell and 3.36 GW module production capacity. In June 2022, Azure Power acquired a 26% stake in the manufacturer (see Azure Power Invests In Solar PV Manufacturer).
Earlier this year, it also signed a letter of intent with a US solar manufacturer to enter into a joint venture (JV) to develop, construct and operate a TOPCon cell fab in the US.
Premier’s IPO plan follows fellow Indian solar manufacturer Alpex Solar completing its IPO to expand its module manufacturing capacity and to invest in a new aluminum frame fab for modules (see India Solar PV News Snippets).
