Billionaires Ambani, Adani plan to build 25GW of clean energy in Indian state

Telangana: Indian conglomerates run by billionaires Mukesh Ambani and Gautam Adani said they will develop a combined 25 gigawatts of renewable power in the southern Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, as the fossil fuels-led groups continue to plow ahead with their green energy goals.

Reliance Industries Ltd. will build 10 gigawatts of solar power in the state, Ambani, Asia’s richest person, said at an investors’ gathering Friday organized by the state. Karan Adani, CEO of Adani Ports & Special Economic Zone, said his group is committed to constructing 15 gigawatts of renewables capacity across five districts over the next few years.

Neither group shared investment outlay for these projects in Andhra Pradesh.

While Reliance made its early fortune in petrochemicals and refining, and Adani in coal trading, both conglomerates are rapidly pivoting away with ambitious green energy goals. Ambani announced a $75 billion investment plan last year and Gautam Adani promised to spend $70 billion across value chain. Reliance and Adani groups already have a significant presence in the state, with the former operating its offshore deep-sea gas fields in the Krishna-Godavari basin and the latter overseeing two large ports.

The investment commitments by the two groups “- both important players in India’s energy transition journey “- are also a vote of confidence for Andhra Pradesh, which for a long time rattled clean energy investors with its plan to renegotiate power purchase contracts.

With the contracts dispute behind them, investors are now looking to harness the rich sunshine and wind of the state.