ADANIGREEN

April 29 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• ADANI GREEN SEES CAPEX OF ABOUT 310 BLN RUPEES IN FY26 - CONF CALL

• ADANI GREEN SEES 5 GW OF OPERATIONAL PROJECTS COMING ONLINE IN FY26 - CONF CALL

Source text: ID:nBSE4M2JVg

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];))

April 23 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• UNIT ENTERS PPA WITH UPPCL FOR 1,250 MW ENERGY STORAGE CAPACITY

Source text: ID:nNSE5Ty8FT

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];;))

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.

By Shritama Bose

MUMBAI, April 17 (Reuters Breakingviews) - It is not quite business as usual for industrialist Gautam Adani. His conglomerate has just issued its first dollar bond since U.S. authorities indicted him on charges relating to a $265 million Indian solar power bribery scheme. The tycoon denies the allegations but the offering shows how the saga is impacting the $135 billion group.

It's a coup for Adani that the world's largest asset manager subscribed to roughly one-third of the $750 million offshore bond this month. The private placement will help its unit acquire infrastructure developer ITD Cementation ITCM.NS. On Tuesday, though, it emerged that other backers who signed up are yield-hungry types.

Private credit providers Farallon Capital Management, Hillhouse-backed Elham Capital, King Street Capital and UK-based Sona Asset Management also picked up slices, the Economic Times reported, citing unnamed sources. King Street and Sona also helped Adani's Australian coal port unit to refinance borrowings through a loan in February.

That makes it look like global banks have become harder to tap for new loans. Barclays and Deutsche Bank were among a legion who extended $5.25 billion to the group for its purchase of two of India's largest cement makers in 2022. Indian banks are not allowed to finance onshore M&A; that limits the infrastructure giant from tapping funding at home where the central bank is cutting interest rates.

The coupon on Adani's bond is in the high single digits, two people familiar with the offering told Breakingviews. It's higher than the 7.45% rate at which Adani Green Energy ADNA.NS priced its aborted $600 million offshore bond in November. Prior to the U.S. charges, Adani disclosed its average financing cost at 8.18%.

All this suggests the Indian group is paying a price, albeit not a punishing one, for its U.S. problems. Shares of most of the group's 10 listed companies also have recovered from the indictment hit. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump's decision to pause enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act has raised expectations that charges against Adani will ease. That hope might yet prove fleeting but for now, Adani is growing his business.

Follow @ShritamaBose on X

CONTEXT NEWS

BlackRock subscribed to roughly one-third of a $750 million bond issued by a unit of India's Adani Group, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters Breakingviews. The bond will help to fund the Indian conglomerate's acquisition of a construction firm. Farallon Capital Management, Elham Capital and King Street Capital invested in the offering too, the Economic Times reported on April 15, citing unnamed sources.

(Editing by Una Galani and Aditya Srivastav)

((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on BOSE/[email protected]))

March 28 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• SUBSIDIARY COMMISSIONED SOLAR POWER PROJECT OF 212.50 MW AT KHAVDA, GUJARAT

• TOTAL OPERATIONAL RENEWABLE GENERATION CAPACITY INCREASED TO 13,700.3 MW

Source text: [ID:]

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];;))

March 24 (Reuters) - Diamond Power Infrastructure Ltd DIAC.NS:

• RECEIVED LETTER OF INTENT FROM ADANI GREEN ENERGY

• ORDER WORTH 2.15 BILLION RUPEES

Source text: [ID:]

Further company coverage: DIAC.NS

(([email protected];;))

March 20 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY LTD - COMMISSIONS 250 MW SOLAR PROJECT IN RAJASTHAN

Source text: ID:nBSE5Y4X6b

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];;))

March 11 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY LTD - UNIT COMMISSIONED SOLAR POWER PROJECT OF 250 MW AT KADAPA, ANDHRA PRADESH

Source text: [ID:]

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];;))

March 9 (Reuters) - Fitch:

• FITCH AFFIRMS ADANI ENERGY AT 'BBB-'; OFF RATING WATCH NEGATIVE; OUTLOOK NEGATIVE

• FITCH - RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH ADANI ENERGY'S LIQUIDITY AND FUNDING REQUIREMENTS HAVE MODERATED

• FITCH- OUTLOOK ON ADANI ENERGY IS NEGATIVE TO REFLECT VIEW OF PENDING PROCEEDINGS AND OUTCOME OF US INVESTIGATIONS

• FITCH - ADANI GROUP DEMONSTRATED ADEQUATE FUNDING ACCESS SINCE US INDICTMENT OF CERTAIN BOARD MEMBERS OF ADANI GREEN ENERGY LIMITED

Source text: ID:nFIT9TKtKD

Further company coverage: ADAI.NS

(([email protected];))

March 3 (Reuters) - India's Adani Green ADNA.NS has raised $1.06 billion to refinance a 2021 debt facility to develop a renewable energy project in the western state of Rajasthan, it said on Monday.

Adani Green did not specify if it raised the amount via loan or dollar bonds.

(Reporting by Sethuraman NR; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)

(([email protected]; (+91 9945291420); Reuters Messaging: [email protected]))

Adds details, background throughout

March 2 (Reuters) - India's Adani Group has revived plans for major infrastructure investments in the U.S., where the group's founder has been charged with bribery, the Financial Times reported on Sunday.

Since the election of President Donald Trump, the conglomerate has reactivated potential plans to fund projects in sectors such as nuclear power and utilities, as well as an East Coast port, the report said, citing four people close to founder and chair Gautam Adani.

Federal prosecutors in New York unsealed an indictment in November accusing Gautam Adani of bribing Indian officials to persuade them to buy electricity produced by Adani Green Energy ADNA.NS.

"We know what we want to do, but we will wait until this (case) resolves," the FT quoted a person close to Adani as saying.

Adani Group has said the charges were "baseless" and that it would seek "all possible legal recourse." It did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment on the FT report.

The group had previously been in talks with U.S. companies on potential partnerships and had looked at petrochemical investments in Texas, the newspaper said.

After Trump's November election win, Gautam Adani said the group planned to invest $10 billion in U.S. energy security and infrastructure projects, creating a potential 15,000 jobs.

Trump has vowed to make it easier for energy companies to drill on federal land and build pipelines.

"Once Trump came in, we have reactivated some plans," the FT said, citing another source it did not name.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission asked Indian authorities last month for help in its investigation of Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani over allegations of securities fraud and a $265-million bribery scheme.

In 2023 the conglomerate was accused by U.S.-based short-seller Hindenburg Research, which disbanded earlier this year, of improper use of offshore tax havens and stock manipulation that sparked a $150 billion rout in shares of the group's companies. Adani denied those allegations.

(Reporting by Mrinmay Dey in Bengaluru; Editing by William Mallard)

(([email protected]; +91 7362903319;))

Feb 26 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY LTD - EXECUTION OF SHARE SUBSCRIPTION AND SHAREHOLDERS' AGREEMENT BY SUSIDIARIES

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY - GENERATOR, CAPTIVE USER HAVE ENTERED INTO POWER CONSUMPTION AGREEMENT

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY - CAPTIVE USER TO INVEST AT LEAST 26% EQUITY OF GENERATOR

Source text: ID:nBSE52GnxD

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];))

Feb 25 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY LTD - SAUR URJA RECEIVES LOA FROM UPPCL FOR 1,250 MW ENERGY STORAGE

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY LTD - ANNUAL FIXED COST UNDER LOA IS 7.7 MILLION RUPEES PER MW PER ANNUM

Source text: ID:nBSE4cFybh

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];;))

Adds Modi comment, details; paragraphs 4,6-8

NEW DELHI, Feb 18 (Reuters) - The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has asked Indian authorities for help in its investigation of Adani Group founder Gautam Adani and his nephew over alleged securities fraud and a $265-million bribery scheme, a court filing showed on Tuesday.

The regulator told a New York district court it was making efforts to serve its complaint on the founder and his nephew, Sagar Adani, and was seeking help from India's law ministry to do so.

Neither individual is in U.S. custody, and both are now in India.

"The SEC has requested assistance ... under the Hague service convention," it said in the court filing.

Adani Group and India's law ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Last week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he did not discuss the Adani case with U.S. President Donald Trump during his visit to Washington, describing it to reporters as an individual issue never discussed by leaders.

India's opposition Congress party has called for Adani's arrest and accused Modi of shielding him or favouring him in deals in the past. Modi's party and Adani have denied the charges.

Last year, federal prosecutors in Brooklyn unsealed an indictment accusing Adani of bribing Indian officials to convince them to buy electricity produced by Adani Green Energy ADNA.NS, a subsidiary of his Adani Group.

He then misled U.S. investors by providing reassuring information about the company's anti-graft practices, it added.

Adani Group has called the accusations "baseless" and vowed to seek "all possible legal recourse".

In January, Adani Green said it had appointed independent law firms to review the U.S. indictment.

(Reporting by Kanjyik Ghosh and Aditya Kalra; Editing by Lisa Shumaker and Clarence Fernandez)

(([email protected];))

Feb 18 (Reuters) -

• US SEC SEEKS INDIAN AUTHORITIES HELP IN SERVING ITS COMPLAINT TO GAUTAM ADANI, SAGAR ADANI IN RELATION TO US INDICTMENT OF LAST YEAR - COURT FILING

• SEC HAS REQUESTED ASSISTANCE FROM INDIA’S MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE UNDER THE HAGUE SERVICE CONVENTION IN RELATION TO THE ADANI CASE - COURT FILING

• SEC’S EFFORTS TO SERVE ITS COMPLAINT TO GAUTAM ADANI, SAGAR ADANI IN CASE RELATED TO US INDICTMENT "ONGOING"--COURT FILING

Further company coverage: ADEL.NS

(([email protected];;))

Adani Enterprises Ltd ADEL.NS:

• ADANI GREEN LETTER: TO WITHDRAW FROM SRI LANKA WIND POWER PROJECTS

• ADANI GREEN: LEARNT THAT ANOTHER CABINET, PROJECT COMMITTEE WOULD BE CONSTITUTED TO RENEGOTIATE PROJECT PROPOSALS

• ADANI GREEN: BOARD DELIBERATED NEW COMMITTEE FORMATION AND DECIDED TO WITHDRAW FROM PROJECTS

Source text: [ID:]

Further company coverage: ADEL.NS

Updates to add graphic, details of estimated passive inflows in paragraphs 6 and 7, adds paragraph 10 to include weightages of India and China in MSCI Global Standard index

By Vivek Kumar M and Bharath Rajeswaran

Feb 12 (Reuters) - MSCI added a lone Indian company, carmaker Hyundai Motor India HYUN.NS, to its Global Standard index late on Tuesday and removed Adani Green Energy ADNA.NS as part of its February 2025 index rejig.

The change will come into effect on the market's close on February 28.

In its previous index reconstitution in November, MSCI had added five domestic companies to the global standard index, lifting India's weightage to nearly 20% in the gauge that tracks emerging markets.

The quarterly rebalancing, which was announced overnight, also saw 20 Indian stocks added to MSCI India Domestic Smallcap Index, including Ola Electric Mobility OLAE.NS, Sundaram Clayton SUNM.NS and Zaggle Prepaid Ocean Services ZAGG.NS, among others.

However, 17 stocks were deleted from the MSCI Smallcap index.

According to IIFL Capital and Nuvama Alternative and Quantitative Research, the MSCI rejig could lead to a net passive inflow of about $850 million to $1 billion into Indian markets.

Private lender IndusInd Bank INBK.NS, which is already part of the global standard index, saw a weight increase which could lead to inflows worth $258 million, according to IIFL Capital.

While MSCI added and removed one Indian stock from the global standard indexes, it added eight stocks from China and deleted 20 stocks from the world's second-largest economy.

Overall, 23 securities will be added and 107 securities deleted from the MSCI global standard indexes as part of the review.

India's weightage in the MSCI Global Standard index dipped to 19% after the latest revisions, from 19.8% in November. China's weightage, meanwhile, increased to 27.1% from 26.8%.

(Reporting by Vivek Kumar M and Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru)

(([email protected];))

Adds quote, details in paragraphs 2-12

By Uditha Jayasinghe

COLOMBO, Jan 28 (Reuters) - The Sri Lankan government has started talks with India's Adani Group to lower the cost of power from two wind power projects the group will build in the island nation's northern province, the cabinet spokesman said on Tuesday.

Sri Lanka has been reviewing the group's local projects after U.S. authorities in November accused billionaire founder Gautam Adani and other executives of being part of a scheme to pay bribes to secure Indian power supply contracts.

Adani has denied the allegations.

"The Sri Lankan government is of the stance that we want a lower price and discussions with Adani have already started," cabinet spokesman and Health and Media Minister Nalinda Jayatissa said.

The government thinks it is possible to bring prices to about $0.06 per kilowatt-hour (kWh) or lower, below the earlier proposed price of $0.08, he said.

Adani did not respond immediately to a request for comment.

Last week, Adani said that its power purchase deal with the Sri Lankan government was intact after the AFP news agency reported it had been revoked.

Adani said the Sri Lankan cabinet's decision earlier this month to re-evaluate the tariff approved in May was a "standard review process" with a new government and that the group remains committed to investing $1 billion in Sri Lanka's green energy sector.

Under the deal with Sri Lanka, Adani Green Energy ADNA.NS would build two wind power stations with a total investment of $442 million.

Cash-strapped Sri Lanka, which has suffered from power blackouts and fuel shortages, has been trying to speed up green power generation to hedge against surges in imported fuel costs.

The U.S. allegations raised concerns among some partners and investors of the group, with at least one Indian state reviewing its power deal with Adani and TotalEnergies TTEF.PA halting further investments in the conglomerate.

The Adani Group is also involved in building a $700 million terminal project at Sri Lanka's largest port in Colombo.

(Reporting by Uditha Jayasinghe; Writing by YP Rajesh)

(([email protected]; X: @YPRajesh;))

Jan 24 (Reuters) - Adani Enterprises Ltd ADEL.NS:

• ADANI SPOKESPERSON: REPORTS THAT ADANI’S 484 MW WIND POWER PROJECTS IN MANNAR AND POONERYN HAVE BEEN CANCELLED ARE FALSE AND MISLEADING

• ADANI SPOKESPERSON: CATEGORICALLY STATE THAT SRI LANKA POWER PURCHASE AGREEMENT HAS NOT BEEN REVOKED

• ADANI SPOKESPERSON: SRI LANKAN CABINET’S DECISION ON JAN 2 TO REEVALUATE TARIFF APPROVED IN MAY 2024 IS PART OF STANDARD REVIEW PROCESS

• ADANI SPOKESPERSON: REMAINS COMMITTED TO INVESTING $1 BILLION IN SRI LANKA’S GREEN ENERGY SECTOR

Source text: [ID:]

Further company coverage: ADEL.NS

(([email protected];))

Jan 23 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• Q3 CONSOL PROFIT 4.74 BILLION RUPEES

• Q3 CONSOL TOTAL INCOME 26.3 BLN RUPEES

Source text: [ID:]

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];;))

Jan 15 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY - 9M FY25 OPERATIONAL CAPACITY INCREASED BY 37% YOY TO 11,609 MW

Source text: ID:nNSE2Hntdw

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];))

Jan 14 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• COMMISSIONED 57.2 MW WIND POWER COMPONENT OF WIND-SOLAR HYBRID PROJECT

• TOTAL OPERATIONAL RENEWABLE GENERATION CAPACITY INCREASED TO 11,666.1 MW

• TO OPERATIONALIZE PLANT, COMMENCE POWER GENERATION FROM JANUARY 15

Source text: ID:nBSE2nFPKW

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];;))

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.

By Shritama Bose

MUMBAI, Jan 7 (Reuters Breakingviews) - ReNew Energy Global’s RNW.O bid to go private may yet heat up. A consortium that owns 64% in the New York-traded Indian clean-energy producer is offering an 11% premium to the undisturbed stock price to buy the rest of the shares it doesn't hold. While there is no word yet on a subsequent listing in Mumbai, the prospect of one will be front of mind for current investors.

India’s second-largest green energy firm by capacity, ReNew listed in 2021 on Nasdaq via a special purpose acquisition company, paving the way for longtime backer Goldman Sachs GS.N to exit two years later. The share price performance has underwhelmed. ReNew is trading at a 32% discount to the price at which it went public: founder and CEO Sumant Sinha grumbled in an interview last year about public markets valuing renewable groups poorly.

Sinha has joined forces with fellow investors Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and a unit of Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, along with the United Arab Emirates-based Masdar, which currently doesn't own ReNew stock, to make an offer of $7.07 per share, implying a market capitalisation of $2.82 billion, per Breakingviews calculations. Adding on net debt, ReNew’s enterprise is worth nearly $10 billion, or 11 times its forecast adjusted EBITDA for the year ending March 2025.

If Sinha follows through on his stated plan to consider moving the listing, Renew could probably secure a much higher valuation in India. Applying larger peer Adani Green Energy’s ADNA.NS multiple of 21 times EBITDA for the year to March 2025 to ReNew would value its debt and equity at more than $18 billion.

Prospective sellers will find that comparison hard to shake off. An India listing makes sense because the country is home to a chunk of ReNew’s operations. Meanwhile, renewable power suppliers, once unloved locally, are sharing the spoils of rich domestic equity valuations. State-backed NTPC Green Energy NTPG.NS enjoyed one of the most successful debuts in 2024: the stock jumped 14% on its first day of trade in November.

ReNew’s U.S. shareholders may yet press the consortium for a bigger payout. To succeed, the offer will need the support of 75% of voting shareholders by size of holdings and also a majority of shareholders by number. That leaves some room for a bumpy transition.

Follow @ShritamaBose on X

CONTEXT NEWS

A consortium of shareholders in Nasdaq-listed clean power producer ReNew Energy Global made a non-binding offer on Dec. 10 to take the company private.

The group is comprised of Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and ReNew Chair Sumant Sinha, who control a combined 64% of shareholder votes in the company, along with the United Arab Emirates-based Masdar, which joins the consortium as a new investor.

The offer price of $7.07 for each share represents an 11.5% premium to the last traded price and values ReNew at $2.82 billion, according to Reuters calculations.

(Editing by Una Galani and Aditya Srivastav)

((For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on BOSE/
[email protected]))

Dec 30 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY LTD - AMIT SINGH TO STEP DOWN AS CEO EFFECTIVE MARCH 31, 2025

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY LTD - ASHISH KHANNA TO ASSUME ROLE OF CEO EFFECTIVE APRIL 1, 2025

Source text: ID:nBSE6FwpYQ

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

(([email protected];))

The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are her own.

By Una Galani

MUMBAI, Dec 19 (Reuters Breakingviews) - There are some startling similarities developing between India and China. How many and how concerned investors should be will rank among the big questions in 2025.

Western policymakers, CEOs and investors have for years debated the potential of the South Asian country to follow the path of its $18 trillion neighbour in terms of GDP per capita and global manufacturing might. Such comparisons are now taking on new meaning in Mumbai financial circles and beyond.

For a start, the world’s view of China has dramatically deteriorated. Growth in the world’s second-largest economy is slowing, and Beijing’s relationship with Washington has soured. These two trends have increased India’s opportunity to shine as an investment destination on the global stage since the Covid-19 pandemic.

China’s current chapter also expands the scope of what it means for a country to emulate the People’s Republic. This now includes some less flattering aspects, and it is here where observers may conclude, rightly or wrongly, India is starting to check a few too many boxes.

The first problematic likeness is the trajectory of India’s $4 trillion economy. It is suddenly underperforming expectations: GDP growth fell to 5.4% in the three months to the end of September, the slowest pace in seven quarters, only 80 basis points faster than China’s print for the comparable period.

That points to a big potential weakness in the belief within Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government that India will deliver a sustained 6%-8% annual GDP growth over the next decade. As in China, domestic problems underpinning weak private consumption – including, in India’s case, anaemic salary growth – appear deep-seated and hard to fix.

What’s more, both economies face serious external headwinds. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump is threatening trade tariffs against the South Asian nation as large as he has threatened against the People’s Republic. Meanwhile, India’s richest man, Gautam Adani, is likely to curb his growth ambitions following his U.S. indictment for securities fraud, which he denies.

The tycoon’s problems put a spotlight on India’s approach to courting foreign investment. Global companies are entering the country in partnership with local firms helmed by a small number of powerful Indian families. That sets up the potential for at least some of the new alliances to sour, just as several Chinese joint ventures did.

France’s TotalEnergies TTEF.PA is grappling with that risk because of its partnership with Adani Green Energy ADNA.NS, the company at the centre of the U.S. legal case. Ultimately, while China was more forceful than India in coercing joint ventures, officials in Beijing and New Delhi want the same thing from foreign multinationals: know-how. That desire to acquire intellectual property may ultimately put India in the West’s crosshairs.

Finally, there is the issue of perceived interference. The U.S. is trying to contain China’s rise, partly because of concerns the Asian behemoth is seeking to influence lawmakers in Washington. Politicians on both sides of the aisle also disapprove of what they view as China’s predatory business practices, cyber intrusions and territorial claims.

Unhelpfully, a somewhat similar label of meddling is starting to stick to India. Canada, a member of the Group of Seven rich countries, slapped a “foreign interference” tag on India in June, unseating Russia as the North American country’s biggest threat after China per its assessment in 2019.

Tensions between Canada and India escalated after Ottawa said Indian diplomats were linked to plots to target Sikh separatists in Canada. India denies the claims, and even if these were true, it would hardly be the first country to seek to assassinate its enemies on foreign soil. The diplomatic brouhaha does not, though, help a capital-hungry country attract investment. Many ordinary Indians view their country as a victim of Canada’s domestic politics in this saga.

Nearer to home, too, there’s a debate about whether India is emerging as a bully to its smaller neighbours including Bangladesh, the Maldives and Nepal; the billions of dollars of aid New Delhi provides these countries in times of crisis does provide leverage, though Modi prefers to describe India as a friend of the world.

Whatever the nuances, global decision-makers are paying attention because disruptions between rich and developing countries can be costly. The deterioration of Sino-American ties has led to a conscious decoupling, accelerating both a crash in Chinese stocks and re-routing of supply chains by U.S. firms beyond the People’s Republic. How India reacts to some of its emerging challenges will set the tone. Burnt by one large emerging market, global investors may prove far less willing to give another the benefit of the doubt.

Follow @ugalani on X

This is a Reuters Breakingviews prediction for 2025. To read more of our predictions, click here.

(Editing by Antony Currie and Oliver Taslic)

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[email protected]))

Updates with post-publication response from ex-chief minister

By Sarita Chaganti Singh, Sudarshan Varadhan

NEW DELHI/SINGAPORE, Dec 17 (Reuters) - The approach from the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) on Sept. 15, 2021 came out of the blue. The federal agency, tasked with developing the solar sector, wanted to know if the southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh would like to sign India's largest renewables contract.

Two years earlier, Andhra Pradesh's energy regulator had said in a 10-year forecast the state had no short-term need for solar power, and should focus on other renewables that could provide 24-hour energy.

But just a day after SECI approached the state government, the 26-member state cabinet led by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy gave the deal its preliminary approval, according to cabinet records seen by Reuters.

While SECI's Sept. 15 letter did not name the energy supplier, it was publicly known at the time that the federal agency had only contracted with two suppliers, the larger of which was controlled by billionaire Gautam Adani, according to past statements from the two companies.

By Nov. 11, the state government had secured the nod from the energy regulator. On Dec. 1, state authorities signed a procurement agreement with SECI for the deal, which could eventually be worth over $490 million annually.

As much as 97% of that will go to Adani Green, the renewables unit of the billionaire's Adani Group conglomerate, according to documents related to the agreement, reviewed by Reuters.

The news agency spoke to a former state power regulator and an energy legal expert who said the 57 days between SECI's approach to the state government and regulatory approval from the Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC) for the 7,000 megawatt deal was unusually fast, although timeframes for such deals can vary.

The solar deal is now under scrutiny by U.S. prosecutors, who indicted Adani and seven other executives in November for alleged involvement in a bribery and securities fraud scheme involving several Indian states and one territory.

U.S. prosecutors allege that $228 million was offered to an unnamed Andhra Pradesh official by the defendants to direct the state's electricity distribution companies to purchase the solar power supplied to SECI by Adani Green.

Reuters reviewed 19 state government documents, many of them previously unreported, and interviewed more than two dozen state and federal officials about the deal, as well as independent energy and legal professionals. Most of the people spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.

Together they provide a picture of how political leaders overruled advice from finance and energy officials in order to approve the massive Adani deal. Some officials have publicly described the contract as likely to strain the state's coffers, potentially leaving taxpayers on the hook for thousands of megawatts of energy that Andhra Pradesh does not need.

Adani Green did not respond to Reuters' questions about the alleged corruption nor the speed of the approval process. Adani Group has previously called the allegations "baseless."

SECI told Reuters in a statement it was up to states and their regulators to decide how much power to purchase. It declined to answer other questions.

The office of Reddy, who was not named in the U.S. indictment and lost power in an election this year, referred Reuters to a Nov. 28 statement in which he denied being bribed and justified the deal on grounds it provided free power to farmers. Reddy's office declined to answer other questions.

A spokesperson for Reddy's party said after this story was published that state energy officials had thoroughly analysed the contract. The official said Andhra Pradesh had signed a good deal because solar prices had not fallen significantly since 2021.

APERC, which regulates the state's power sector and was responsible for due diligence on the deal, did not respond to repeated requests for comment on its processes and the U.S. allegations.

The current state government also did not respond to requests for comment.

DUE DILIGENCE

For most of Sept. 15, 2021 then-energy minister Balineni Srinivasa Reddy was unaware of any potential solar deal, he told Reuters.

But late that night, he received a call from a person in his office, whom he did not identify, about a proposal that required his signature for discussion in cabinet the next day, said Srinivasa Reddy, who joined a rival party this year.

"Never before" had he been so rushed to approve files, he said, and he was not given "details or time to study the matter."

Srinivasa Reddy said he signed off after being assured by a senior official at his department, whom he also did not identify, that the contracting party was SECI. He said he had "no idea the supplier was Adani."

Srikant Nagulapalli, who declined to comment, was then the top civil servant in Srinivasa Reddy's department. Reuters could not establish if Reddy consulted him or if he provided assurances about the deal.

The next day, cabinet approved the deal "in principle," according to minutes from the cabinet meeting, allowing the regulatory process to be fast-tracked.

On Oct. 21, the Andhra Pradesh Power Coordination Committee (APPCC) - which had been tasked with studying the deal after the preliminary approval - filed a report recommending the deal.

The committee was established by the state government to coordinate between state-owned distribution companies; its members include the state's top energy official and company executives.

Seven days later, the Andhra Pradesh cabinet officially committed to procuring 7,000 megawatts from SECI.

In doing so, it overrode advice from officials at the finance and energy departments that the contract did not represent good value.

On Oct. 28 - the same day as the cabinet meeting that approved the deal but before the greenlight was given - the finance department made a submission to the cabinet stating there was an industry trend of falling solar prices and that future agreements would likely be cheaper, according to cabinet minutes.

It said Andhra Pradesh had leverage because the government was the buyer, offering the supplier security that a default would be unlikely.

The treasury also questioned the duration of the 25-year contract, especially since supply was scheduled to start only in 2024, according to the minutes. The treasury said it believed costs could continue to fall in the period between agreeing the contract and power being supplied.

The energy department endorsed the treasury's advice.

The records of the cabinet deliberations do not document any discussion about the finance and energy departments' concerns beyond a statement in the minutes that the cabinet was "duly overruling the finance remark."

Andhra Pradesh will pay 2.49 rupees per kilowatt-hour when the solar power comes online, according to the agreement.

An Adani Green spokesperson told Reuters that supply would be delayed beyond 2024, citing delays in "grid availability."

However, an analysis released by the office of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu - who ousted Reddy's government in elections this year - found the state would likely have to pay more, because the contract did not account for certain taxes and duties that are typically included in such calculations.

A state official familiar with the matter said Andhra Pradesh is likely to pay as much as 23% over the price it agreed in the Adani contract once the taxes and duties are included.

Andhra Pradesh is now seeking to suspend the deal due to the indictment of Gautam Adani. A decision could come by year-end, an official told Reuters.

If the Adani deal goes ahead, the state treasury will be directly on the hook for solar bills running hundreds of millions of dollars annually, according to Reuters' review of contract documents. Annual payments to Adani once the power supply is fully operational will be roughly equal to state spending on social security and nutrition programs for the previous fiscal year.

($1 = 84.8380 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Sarita Chaganti Singh in New Delhi and Sudarshan Varadhan in Singapore; Editing by Aftab Ahmed and Katerina Ang)

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Repeats story from Monday afternoon in Asia

By Sarita Chaganti Singh, Sudarshan Varadhan

NEW DELHI/SINGAPORE, Dec 17 (Reuters) - The approach from the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) on Sept. 15, 2021 came out of the blue. The federal agency, tasked with developing the solar sector, wanted to know if the southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh would like to sign India's largest renewables contract.

Two years earlier, Andhra Pradesh's energy regulator had said in a 10-year forecast the state had no short-term need for solar power, and should focus on other renewables that could provide 24-hour energy.

But just a day after SECI approached the state government, the 26-member state cabinet led by Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy gave the deal its preliminary approval, according to cabinet records seen by Reuters.

While SECI's Sept. 15 letter did not name the energy supplier, it was publicly known at the time that the federal agency had only contracted with two suppliers, the larger of which was controlled by billionaire Gautam Adani, according to past statements from the two companies.

By Nov. 11, the state government had secured the nod from the energy regulator. On Dec. 1, state authorities signed a procurement agreement with SECI for the deal, which could eventually be worth over $490 million annually.

As much as 97% of that will go to Adani Green, the renewables unit of the billionaire's Adani Group conglomerate, according to documents related to the agreement, reviewed by Reuters.

The news agency spoke to a former state power regulator and an energy legal expert who said the 57 days between SECI's approach to the state government and regulatory approval from the Andhra Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission (APERC) for the 7,000 megawatt deal was unusually fast, although timeframes for such deals can vary.

The solar deal is now under scrutiny by U.S. prosecutors, who indicted Adani and seven other executives in November for alleged involvement in a bribery and securities fraud scheme involving several Indian states and one territory.

U.S. prosecutors allege that $228 million was offered to an unnamed Andhra Pradesh official by the defendants to direct the state's electricity distribution companies to purchase the solar power supplied to SECI by Adani Green.

Reuters reviewed 19 state government documents, many of them previously unreported, and interviewed more than two dozen state and federal officials about the deal, as well as independent energy and legal professionals. Most of the people spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter.

Together they provide a picture of how political leaders overruled advice from finance and energy officials in order to approve the massive Adani deal. Some officials have publicly described the contract as likely to strain the state's coffers, potentially leaving taxpayers on the hook for thousands of megawatts of energy that Andhra Pradesh does not need.

Adani Green did not respond to Reuters' questions about the alleged corruption nor the speed of the approval process. Adani Group has previously called the allegations "baseless."

SECI told Reuters in a statement it was up to states and their regulators to decide how much power to purchase. It declined to answer other questions.

The office of Reddy, who was not named in the U.S. indictment and lost power in an election this year, referred Reuters to a Nov. 28 statement in which he denied being bribed and justified the deal on grounds it provided free power to farmers. Reddy's office declined to answer other questions.

APERC, which regulates the state's power sector and was responsible for due diligence on the deal, did not respond to repeated requests for comment on its processes and the U.S. allegations.

The current state government also did not respond to requests for comment.

DUE DILIGENCE

For most of Sept. 15, 2021 then-energy minister Balineni Srinivasa Reddy was unaware of any potential solar deal, he told Reuters.

But late that night, he received a call from a person in his office, whom he did not identify, about a proposal that required his signature for discussion in cabinet the next day, said Srinivasa Reddy, who joined a rival party this year.

"Never before" had he been so rushed to approve files, he said, and he was not given "details or time to study the matter."

Srinivasa Reddy said he signed off after being assured by a senior official at his department, whom he also did not identify, that the contracting party was SECI. He said he had "no idea the supplier was Adani."

Srikant Nagulapalli, who declined to comment, was then the top civil servant in Srinivasa Reddy's department. Reuters could not establish if Reddy consulted him or if he provided assurances about the deal.

The next day, cabinet approved the deal "in principle," according to minutes from the cabinet meeting, allowing the regulatory process to be fast-tracked.

On Oct. 21, the Andhra Pradesh Power Coordination Committee (APPCC) - which had been tasked with studying the deal after the preliminary approval - filed a report recommending the deal.

The committee was established by the state government to coordinate between state-owned distribution companies; its members include the state's top energy official and company executives.

Seven days later, the Andhra Pradesh cabinet officially committed to procuring 7,000 megawatts from SECI.

In doing so, it overrode advice from officials at the finance and energy departments that the contract did not represent good value.

On Oct. 28 - the same day as the cabinet meeting that approved the deal but before the greenlight was given - the finance department made a submission to the cabinet stating there was an industry trend of falling solar prices and that future agreements would likely be cheaper, according to cabinet minutes.

It said Andhra Pradesh had leverage because the government was the buyer, offering the supplier security that a default would be unlikely.

The treasury also questioned the duration of the 25-year contract, especially since supply was scheduled to start only in 2024, according to the minutes. The treasury said it believed costs could continue to fall in the period between agreeing the contract and power being supplied.

The energy department endorsed the treasury's advice.

The records of the cabinet deliberations do not document any discussion about the finance and energy departments' concerns beyond a statement in the minutes that the cabinet was "duly overruling the finance remark."

Andhra Pradesh will pay 2.49 rupees per kilowatt-hour when the solar power comes online, according to the agreement.

An Adani Green spokesperson told Reuters that supply would be delayed beyond 2024, citing delays in "grid availability."

However, an analysis released by the office of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu - who ousted Reddy's government in elections this year - found the state would likely have to pay more, because the contract did not account for certain taxes and duties that are typically included in such calculations.

A state official familiar with the matter said Andhra Pradesh is likely to pay as much as 23% over the price it agreed in the Adani contract once the taxes and duties are included.

Andhra Pradesh is now seeking to suspend the deal due to the indictment of Gautam Adani. A decision could come by year-end, an official told Reuters.

If the Adani deal goes ahead, the state treasury will be directly on the hook for solar bills running hundreds of millions of dollars annually, according to Reuters' review of contract documents. Annual payments to Adani once the power supply is fully operational will be roughly equal to state spending on social security and nutrition programs for the previous fiscal year.

($1 = 84.8380 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Sarita Chaganti Singh in New Delhi and Sudarshan Varadhan in Singapore; Editing by Aftab Ahmed and Katerina Ang)

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Adds details of joint statement from paragraph 2

NEW DELHI, Dec 16 (Reuters) - India plans to supply liquefied natural gas to Sri Lanka's power plants and will work on connecting the power grids of the two countries as well as lay a petroleum pipeline between the neighbours, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Monday.

Modi was speaking at a joint press briefing with Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake in New Delhi.

Dissanayake is on his first official visit to Sri Lanka's powerful neighbour after winning the presidency in September and securing a landslide parliamentary election victory last month.

Indian state-run firm Petronet LNG PLNG.NS has signed a deal to supply liquefied natural gas to Sri Lankan engineering firm LTL Holdings' power plants in Colombo for five years through its terminal in the southern Indian city of Kochi.

Both sides also discussed a plan to connect power grids and lay a multi-product petroleum pipeline between the two countries, a joint statement from the Indian External Affairs Ministry said.

The two countries also agreed to jointly develop offshore wind power potential in the Palk Straits, an area where India's Adani Green Energy Ltd. ADNA.NS already has plans to invest $442 million in two wind power stations.

Sri Lanka is reviewing the wind power project along with a $553 million terminal project at the Colombo port also linked to Adani Ports APSE.NS. But it was unclear if the projects were discussed during the meeting between Modi and Dissanayake.

Last month, U.S. authorities accused Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani and seven others of being part of a $265 million scheme to bribe Indian officials, and of misleading U.S. investors while raising funds there.

The ports-to-power conglomerate has termed the allegations "baseless" and said it would seek "all possible legal recourse".

India extended more than $4 billion in aid to Sri Lanka when the island nation's economy plunged into a severe financial crisis in 2022 and entered into a preliminary debt restructuring agreement, along with other bilateral creditors Japan and China, in July.

The two countries will now finalise discussions on the bilateral memorandum of understanding needed to complete the debt restructuring process, the joint statement added.

(Reporting by Shanima A in Mumbai and Shivam Patel in New Delhi; Editing by YP Rajesh)

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Dec 13 (Reuters) - Adani Green Energy Ltd ADNA.NS:

• ADANI GREEN ENERGY - UNIT INCORPORATED SUBSIDIARY ADANI GREEN ENERGY SIXTY NINE

Source text: ID:nBSEbhk2H8

Further company coverage: ADNA.NS

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Adds details on the offer in paragraph 4, share price move in paragraph 5 and analyst comment in paragraph 9-11

Dec 11 (Reuters) - Some of the biggest investors in ReNew Energy Global RNW.O have offered to take the company private, filings to the U.S. Securities And Exchange Commission (SEC) show, in a deal that values the clean power generator at $2.82 billion, according to Reuters calculations.

Major shareholders Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, UAE-based Masdar, ReNew Chairman Sumant Sinha and a unit of the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority have offered to buy shares in India's second largest clean energy generator at $7.07 each.

The consortium has collective voting rights of 64% in ReNew, which is India's second biggest renewable energy firm after Adani Green.

The offer represents an 11.5% premium to ReNew's closing price of $6.34 on Nasdaq on Dec. 10. The valuation is based on a total of 398.61 million diluted shares outstanding as of Aug. 15, according to the company's website.

Shares of ReNew closed 17.7% higher at $7.46 on the Nasdaq on Wednesday, 5.5% above the offer price.

ReNew operates 10.3 gigawatts (GW) of solar, wind, hydro and hybrid projects across India. Its stock had lost nearly 18% of its value this year before the offer was made.

In a letter to the lead independent director of ReNew's board attached to the SEC filings, the consortium said the proposal would provide the company's shareholders with "immediate liquidity not available in the public markets".

CreditSights, a unit of Fitch Group, noted ReNew's delisting from NASDAQ would lead to poorer disclosures and leave it unable to raise funds from the U.S. public equity markets.

But it said the move would lower compliance and regulatory costs for the company's ambitious expansion plans.

"It will ... introduce a new reputed UAE state-owned shareholder Masdar that could open up more funding channels in the UAE/Middle East," CreditSights said in a note, adding that ReNew's equity valuations had been weak for a prolonged period.

Masdar said in a statement the proposal "would provide capital investment to support the country's energy transition".

The offer, if approved by the board, would mean an exit for Japan's top utility JERA, which owned 11.7% of Class A shares in the company, according to ReNew's annual filing in July. It was not immediately clear if JERA still held a stake of that size in the company.

Goldman Sachs, one of ReNew's earliest investors, sold its entire stake after the energy company went public in 2021.

(Reporting by Sethuraman NR in Bengaluru, Andres Gonzalez in London; Additional reporting and writing by Sudarshan Varadhan; Editing by Tasim Zahid, Barbara Lewis and Kate Mayberry)

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Dec 11 (Reuters) - A group of shareholders has offered to take Indian clean energy firm Renew Energy Global RNW.O private, an SEC filing showed on Tuesday.

The group comprising Renew's founder and chairman, Sumant Sinha, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority's subsidiary Platinum Hawk, and Masdar, owns 64% of the fully diluted public shares of the Nasdaq-listed company.

The group is offering shareholders of the company - whose market capitalisation stood at $2.37 billion as of last close, according to LSEG data - $7.07 per share, a premium of 11.5% to the stock's last close.

Renew, which has a clean energy portfolio of about 16.3 gigawatts (GW) as of Sept., is among the top firms in the renewable energy space in India, and competes with companies like Adani Green ADNA.NS and Tata Power TTPW.NS

"This proposal reflects Masdar's positive assessment of the strength of India’s renewable sector and would provide capital investment to support the country’s energy transition," the UAE government-owned renewable energy company said in a statement.

Renew shares have fallen about 36% since listing in Feb 2021.

(Reporting by Sethuraman NR, Andres Gonzalez in London; Editing by Tasim Zahid)

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