KKR plans to invest more than INR60bn ($632mn) in Gentari Renewable India, the Indian renewables unit of Malaysia’s Petronas. The Economic Times reported the plan on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter. The KKR Gentari investment still needs a green light from the Competition Commission of India (CCI).
How the KKR Gentari investment works
KKR’s vehicle, Sapphire US Holdco LLC, has asked the CCI to approve the deal, according to filings seen by ET. However, the money will not buy KKR a stake straight away. Instead, it gives KKR the option to own a stake in the future, the report said.
Gentari wants the capital to grow its renewable and green hydrogen projects. It also plans to cut debt. In addition, part of the money will go towards stakes in some of its Indian renewable joint ventures.
Why the deal matters
Gentari bought a 1.6 GW portfolio of renewable projects from Brookfield early last year. Soon after, it began looking for a financial partner. An executive who knows the deal spoke to ET. “The plan is to grow with the funding from KKR by building on the existing portfolio of projects,” the executive said.
Gentari also has a joint venture with ReNew for solar, wind and hybrid power. Meanwhile, it works with AM Green on hydrogen and ammonia. KKR and Gentari did not respond to ET’s queries.
What to watch
The deal brings fresh overseas capital into India’s clean power build-out. Yet new capacity still depends on the grid, as our analysis of India’s grid bottleneck shows. Next, watch for the CCI decision and any stake terms.
