Avaada raises close to INR 6 Billion: Avaada Group’s Avaada Energy has announced raising INR 5.97 billion ($71 million) to refinance its projects in the states of Karnataka and Maharashtra. Approved by NIIF Infrastructure Finance Limited, it will enable Avaada’s commercial and industrial (C&I) solar projects to be refinanced. Avaada says these projects currently supply electricity to various corporates including Bharati Airtel, Motherson, Bharat Forge, STT, Nxtra Data, Lumax, among others. It also facilitates the prepayment of the company’s existing loan facility along with reducing its finance costs while releasing capital for future deployment.
ALMM clarification: The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has specified that the Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM) List I will not apply to renewable energy projects under open-access and net-metering schemes. However, the 1st application for project approval should have been submitted before October 1, 2022 to any relevant entities. These could be distribution licensees, State Transmission Utility (STU), Central Transmission Utility of India Limited (CTUIL), load dispatch centers at the state/national/regional level, Grid Controller of India Limited, or the state nodal agencies for renewable energy. After keeping it in abeyance for a year, the ALMM mandate was reimposed on April 1, 2024, a move aimed at promoting the use of domestically manufactured solar panels for government-related projects. Now, the ministry is also mulling bringing in ALMM List II for locally produced solar panels (see India Invites Public Consultation On ALMM For Solar PV Cells).
9.45 MW solar plant for ITC: Indian conglomerate ITC Limited has commissioned a 9.45 MW solar power plant in Karnataka’s Davangere district. This is the company’s 2nd offsite solar plant in Karnataka. The new project is equipped with bifacial solar panels and string inverters. It will generate close to 15 million units annually to power its hotels such as ITC Gardenia and ITC Windsor, its R&D facility in Bengaluru, the ITC Life Sciences and Technology Centre (LSTC), food manufacturing units including 2 large integrated facilities in Mysuru and Malur, Agri product processing factory, warehousing and logistics facility as well as the ITC Green Centre in Bengaluru. At the national level, it is the company’s 4th offsite solar plant with the other units operating in Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh.
IBM acquires Prescinto: Indian technology group IBM has acquired Prescinto, which provides asset performance management (APM) software-as-a-service (SaaS) for renewable energy. It leverages artificial intelligence (AI) to enable advanced monitoring, analytics, and automation to streamline renewable energy operations and manage clean energy and storage assets. IBM said this acquisition will enhance the capabilities of its IBM Maximo Application Suite (MAS) which is the company’s solution for asset management. The Senior Vice President of Product Management and Growth at IBM Software, Kareem Yusuf said this acquisition will further enable the company to support its clients’ sustainability initiatives and net-zero goals. Users will be able to track and monitor the performance of solar, wind and energy storage assets in near real-time, identify root causes for underperformance, and recommend actions to optimize generation.
124 MW AC contract for Tembo: Engineering company Tembo Global Industries has secured its maiden power purchase agreement (PPA) for 25 years for 124 MW AC solar PV capacity with the State Government of Maharashtra. Tembo recently entered the solar energy space and landed its 1st contract worth INR 5.95 billion ($70.78 million). It plans to execute the contract within the next 18 months. This capacity needs to be installed under the agricultural feeder level solarization scheme Mukhyamantri Saur Krushi Vahini Yojana 2.0, launched to implement component C of the PM-KUSUM Scheme.
JTPV at REI 2024: Chinese PV cell and module maker Jietai Solar (JTPV) highlighted its MoNo series and back contact (BC) solar cells at the recently concluded Renewable Energy India Expo (REI) 2024 in Greater Noida, India. The company’s MoNo 1 n-type solar cells are equipped with advanced technologies that the manufacturer lists as Stack Wafer Depo Process, Selective Emitter (J-SE), Emitter-metal Contact Optimization (J-SE+), Gradient-index Coating, and Super Thin Fingers (J-STF). Their efficiencies exceed 26.3%, it claims, with open-circuit voltages of 732 mV. JTPV says its shipments to India are gaining ground and it has a robust pipeline of advanced solar technologies for the Indian market.
Huasun at REI 2024: Huasun Energy was also at REI 2024 with its heterojunction (HJT) solar offerings, including the Everest rectangular series and the Himalaya series of wafers, cells and modules. Its high-efficiency Himalaya G12 series HJT modules have obtained the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) certification. “At this year’s REI, Huasun has further optimized the temperature coefficient of its entire HJT product line to -0.24%/°C, directly addressing the challenge of India’s high temperatures,” stated Huasun. The company is also eyeing opportunities in the Indian solar market for its HJT solar cells since the country still depends upon imported cells for its modules.
L&T buys 216 MW solar modules: Rayzon Solar will supply 216 MW of its solar modules to Larsen and Toubro (L&T) Construction Renewables to be used for floating and ground-mounted solar projects.
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