Mumbai : The Danish Investment Fund for Developing Countries (IFU) is investing USD 34 million in CleanMax, a leading renewable energy company in the commercial and industrial (C&I) segment in Asia, having built an aggregated capacity of 750+ MW of installed solar and wind-solar hybrid power.
India is the third largest consumer of electricity in the world. Today, 60 per cent of the country’s consumption is based on fossil fuel, especially coal. By investing USD 34m in CleanMax, IFU will contribute to the green transition and make it easier for Indian companies to reduce their carbon footprint.
“The investment in CleanMax is in line with our ambition to support the green transition in developing countries and emerging markets. Going forward, our financing will contribute to further reduce the carbon footprint from Indian companies and assist India in reaching its target of 450 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2030,” said Torben Huss, CEO, IFU.
Installing additional capacity around two gigawatt
CleanMax, founded in 2011, acts as sustainability partner to leading corporates in Asia, by developing solar and wind projects under the Build Own Operate model by providing renewable electricity under long-term agreements, creating significant savings for end-users. The company currently serves over 150 customers, including Facebook, Adobe, Cargill Foods, Volvo, Tata Group, Mahindra Group, Grasim, MG Motors and others.
CleanMax will use this investment to accelerate its rapid growth in the C&I renewable energy space in India, as well as in the Middle East and in South East Asia. In India, the company has new investments lined up in solar, wind and wind-solar hybrid projects in many Indian states, including Karnataka, Gujarat, Maharashtra; Haryana, UP and Tamil Nadu, to serve the needs of corporate customers.
CleanMax has a promising growth potential, and the ambition is to install an additional capacity of around 2 gigawatt of renewable energy in the next three years.
Supporting the India-Danish Green Strategic Partnership
The investment in CleanMax is IFU’s second within renewables in India, following the signing of the India-Danish Green Strategic Partnership in 2020 by India’s prime minister Narendra Modi and the Danish prime minister Mette Frederiksen.
“We are very pleased to be able to support the India-Danish Green Strategic Partnership through this investment in Cleanmax. We stand ready to continue our efforts within renewables and other green investments in India,” said Deepa Hingorani, Vice President, North and South Asia, IFU.
Investing alongside Augment Infrastructure
IFU’s investment is made on behalf of the Danish SDG Investment Fund, which is backed by the Danish state, large Danish pension funds and private investors. Moreover, IFU is investing in CleanMax alongside Augment Infrastructure, following Augment’s investment into the company earlier this year. Augment is a growth infrastructure investor with primary focus on emerging markets across sectors such as power, water and sanitation, telecom infrastructure and transport. IFU’s partnership with Augment offers a combination of skills, network and experience that should accelerate CleanMax’s successful journey forward.
Kuldeep Jain, Founder and Managing Director, CleanMax said: “CleanMax is happy to welcome Denmark’s IFU to its equity base; along with the Government of the United Kingdom’s UK Climate Investments (UKCI) and Augment Infrastructure. This equity will help us to further expand our wind- solar hybrid offerings and accelerate our operating capacity from 750+ MW to around 2500 MW in the next 3 years. In an era where the effects of climate change are being felt around the globe, I’m confident that we will together continue to grow CleanMax as the most trusted sustainability partner for corporates in Asia.”
About IFU:
IFU – the Investment Fund for Developing Countries is a Danish impact investor contributing to green, just and inclusive societies as well as supporting the Sustainable Development Goals. We provide risk capital to companies operating in developing countries across Africa, Asia, Latin America and parts of Europe.
Investments are made on commercial terms in the form of equity, loans and guarantees. IFU has co-invested in over 1,300 companies in more than 100 developing countries and emerging markets. Contracted investments total EUR 31 billion, of which IFU has contributed EUR 3.4 billion. Capital under management is EUR 1.7 billion.
About CleanMax :
CleanMax is Asia’s largest provider of solar and wind power to corporates and institutional clients. The company was founded in 2011 in India and has successfully commissioned more than 350
projects for over 150 corporates, resulting in an operational capacity of 750+ MW across India, UAE and Thailand.
CleanMax has been backed by marquee institutional investors like Augment Infrastructure, a USbased fund manager, UK Climate Investments (UKCI), a joint venture between the Green Investment Group and the UK Government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, and IFU, the Danish Investment Fund for Developing Countries backed by the Danish State, large Danish pension funds and private investors.
