Singapore's Sembcorp to Invest $1-bn in India to double clean energy portfolio.

Sembcorp Industries, Singapore's leading utilities and ship building group, is looking to invest over a billion dollars over the next 5-7 years to double its clean energy generation portfolio in the country while gradually moving away from large, greenfield thermal coal projects that are still facing land acquisition and fuel linkage logjams. The recent confusion over capping of fixed tariffs after the recent coal auctions has also made them wary.

In February, Sembcorp Utilities, a wholly-owned subsidiary, acquired a 60% stake in Green Infra -a leading renewable energy platform -from its private equity owners IDFC Alternatives for Rs. 1,051 crore. This was their first invest ment in the space in India, after having backed two coastal thermal coal projects in Andhra Pradesh in 2011.

This is also the first and only FDI in the power sector in India since the Narendra Modi government came to power.

'Compared to China, we were late in entering the Indian market because it took it took us a few years to understand the amendments in Indian Electricity Act amendments of 2003.


ET