Energy giant Shell has increased its global solar footprint with the acquisition of a 49% stake in Cleantech Solar, a Southeast Asia and India-focused pureplay solar company.
And Shell has retained the possibility to increase its position in the company after 2021 in a move which gives the company an “immediate path” in the C&I solar markets in Southeast Asia and India.
Financial terms of the deal have not been disclosed.
Cleantech Solar develops, owns and operates C&I solar installations throughout its target markets, counting the likes of Coca-Cola, Kellogg’s, Cognizant and Mazak among its customers. Having signed more than 120 contracts with local and multinational corporations, its portfolio comprises 200MW of operational solar and has generated more than 100,000 MWh of power to date.
Shell’s investment in the firm is expected to ramp up Cleantech’s ambitions in the space and Raju Shukla, the company’s chairman and founder, said it would provide a “tremendous boost”.
Cleantech is the second solar developer to have attracted Shell’s interest in 2018. Shell first acquired a 44% stake in US-based developer Silicon Ranch in a deal worth somewhere between US$193 – 217 million which, in a similar fashion to this deal, includes an option to increase its stake after 2021.
Marc van Gerven, vice president of solar and storage at Shell, said Cleantech Solar’s record had impressed the company.
“Asia is a significant commercial and industrial solar generation market for Shell and we are proud to work with Cleantech Solar as a leading solar company in the region,” he said.
