Premier Energies, Azure Power partner on solar cells, modules

From pv magazine India

Solar manufacturer Premier Energies and renewables developer Azure Power will jointly invest $89.6 million to set up a 1.25 GW solar cell and module facility in the Indian state of Telangana. The factory will produce 540 W mono PERC modules with M10 cells and 660 W modules with G12 cells.

Premier Energies will supply 2.4 GW of solar modules to Azure Power over the next four years. The company said it will build the factory according to global standards.

“Azure will have 26% of the total equity after deducting the debt,” Chiranjeev Saluja, the managing director of Premier Energies, told pv magazine. “Unlike GEF, which is a private equity investor in this facility, Azure is a strategic partner that is not only investing but also has an order book.”

The investment in the Premier Energies facility is part of Azure Power's commitment to work on capacity won under Solar Energy Corp. of India’s manufacturing-linked tender. The developer secured 4 GW of solar projects the auction, in return for committing to set up 1 GW worth of cell and module production lines.

“We have secured order book [from Azure] for four years. Further supply will be mutually extended as the SECI tender mandates Azure to have an equity stake of a minimum of 26% in the manufacturing project for eight years,” said Saluja.

Azure Power developed India’s first utility-scale solar project in 2009. Since then, it has become a leader in developing and operating large utility-scale renewable energy projects in the country.

Premier Energies is purportedly India’s second-largest integrated solar cell and module manufacturer. It has manufacturing facilities in Hyderabad, with an operational capacity of 750 MW of solar cells and 1.25 GW of solar modules. It recently raised $25.8 million from GEF Capital Partners.