ReNew Inks MoU with Asian Development Bank for $5.3 Billion

ReNew Energy Global (ReNew) has officially entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to collaborate on climate change mitigation and adaptation projects. The MoU, signed at COP28 in Dubai, outlines a comprehensive partnership covering projects with an investment value exceeding $5.3 billion, spanning the period from 2023 to 2028. ReNew's Chairman and CEO, Sumant Sinha, and ADB's Director General Private Sector Operations Department, Suzanne Gaboury, formalized the agreement recently.

The scope of the MoU encompasses potential investments in renewable energy projects, manufacturing, carbon offset initiatives, and green hydrogen ventures. These collaborative efforts aim to support a sustainable energy transition and mark a pioneering move in the Indian renewable energy sector, drawing international attention to financing long-term debt for significant infrastructure projects.

ReNew anticipates that the MoU will contribute to ADB's funding ambition of $100 billion in green energy projects by 2030. Kailash Vaswani, CFO of ReNew Energy Global, highlighted that the funding would apply to both planned and future projects. He emphasized, "The projects for which we will start construction soon, we will mandate ADB to arrange the financing. There are some projects which will come up in the future and for that again there will be preferred access."

Vaswani clarified that while the MoU grants preferred access to financing from ADB, the funds would be subject to a thorough appraisal process before release. This strategic partnership positions ReNew at the forefront of capital investment in India, offering a substantial advantage in securing financing from a prominent Banking and Financial Institution (BFI).

Sumant Sinha emphasized the significance of significant financing to achieve global climate targets and expressed anticipation for collaborative efforts with ADB in the coming years. Sinha stated, "We look forward to collaborating with Asian Development Bank over the coming years to meet India’s target of achieving 500 GW of renewable capacity by 2030."

With an impressive portfolio of nearly 14 gigawatts (GW) of clean energy capacity, ReNew has successfully commissioned projects with a capacity of 8 GW, while 6 GW are currently under execution. The company has secured additional projects with a capacity of 3 GW in FY24, and power purchase agreements (PPAs) for these ventures are in the process of being finalized. ReNew has already invested approximately $8 billion in the clean energy sector, and the MoU with ADB positions the company to raise further funding for its ambitious renewable energy projects.

HBL