ACEN seals stake sale in India solar venture

ACEN Corp., owned by the Zobel family, has finalized the sale of a portion of its stake in a significant solar project in India to Dutch firm Diamond India Renewables One B.V. (DIRO). The agreement, finalized on September 23, provides DIRO with an initial 10% voting stake in Tejorupa Renewables India Project Pte. Ltd. This move is part of ACEN's ongoing strategy to reduce its equity interests in certain renewable power projects under construction in India.

ACEN initially announced plans to divest up to a 49% stake in Tejorupa. To effect the sale, ACEN's entities Unlimited Renewables Holdings B.V. and Amsa Solar Holdco Pte. Ltd. entered into agreements with DIRO, including a securities subscription and purchase agreement, and a shareholders' agreement. Unlimited Renewables, a subsidiary of ACEN, and Amsa Solar, a joint venture between ACEN and Singapore-based UPC Renewables, are the entities facilitating this transaction.

The purchased project, Tejorupa, is developing a 250-megawatt (MW) alternating-current solar farm in Rajasthan, India. As of June, ACEN's India-based renewable energy capacity constituted approximately 20% of its total renewable capacity. Recently, ACEN has been focusing on reducing its equity stakes in selected renewable projects being developed in India.

Earlier this year, ACEN announced intentions to sell up to 49% interests in two India wind projects totaling 120 MW, including the 100-MW Diyos Renewables project and the 20-MW Avana Renewables facility, both located in Karnataka, India.