Avaada Group has submitted an IPO application worth ₹7,600 crore for its solar equipment manufacturing division, Avaada Electro, and has settled ₹6,713 crore in debt to Canadian investor Brookfield. In an interview with Raghavendra Kamath, Vineet Mittal, the founder and chairman of Avaada Group, elaborates on the company’s growth strategies in energy storage, green hydrogen, ammonia, nuclear energy, and fundraising efforts. Here are some highlights:
Regarding the interest in nuclear energy, Mittal stated that the company is closely monitoring developments in both policy and technology. He highlighted the government’s Nuclear Energy Mission and its ₹20,000-crore initiative for the advancement of small modular reactors (SMRs) as particularly noteworthy. Mittal pointed out that indigenous technologies like the Bharat Small Modular Reactor could eventually pave the way for dependable low-carbon electricity, industrial energy production, and hydrogen generation. However, he emphasized that the nuclear sector, especially SMRs, is still an evolving field, prompting Avaada to adopt a cautious approach rather than making premature commitments.
When asked about Avaada’s limited engagement in acquisitions within the renewable energy sector, Mittal explained that the company has historically favored greenfield projects over acquisitions. He mentioned that Avaada excels at asset creation and project execution while adhering to quality and cost management, which differentiates it from merely aggregating existing projects. This strategy allows for better control over project quality, technology selection, capital expenses, and operational performance right from the start. Mittal noted that while the company is open to considering acquisitions that align strategically—be it in terms of location, technology, or asset advantages—these must also meet their return expectations.
On fundraising efforts, Mittal revealed that discussions with global lenders, including Standard Chartered Bank and SMBC, have progressed significantly, moving beyond initial talks. In the first quarter of FY27, Avaada successfully secured nearly $950 million in debt financing for three utility-scale renewable energy projects, which feature a 590 MW firm and dispatchable renewable energy project in Bikaner and two 300 MW solar projects in Rajasthan and Gujarat. The financing involved various lending groups, including Standard Chartered Bank, State Bank of India, HSBC, DBS, SMBC, MUFG, and BNP Paribas.
Additionally, Avaada obtained around $1.3 billion for a 2.15 GW renewable energy portfolio across four special-purpose vehicles (SPVs), with State Bank of India, REC, and Canara Bank participating as lenders. As the company expands, it plans to continue exploring both domestic and international financing options for its projects.
In the realm of battery storage, Mittal indicated that Avaada is already in the process of building significant storage capacity, with 2.5 GWh of battery energy storage systems (BESS) in Rajasthan and approximately 4 GWh in other regions. The company has established a substantial pipeline for BESS and anticipates that storage will play a crucial role in future renewable energy projects. He noted that the applications extend beyond energy arbitrage, as BESS can assist with peak demand management, shift renewable energy usage to peak periods, stabilize renewable generation, alleviate congestion, and increasingly offer vital grid support services. There is also a growing demand from large commercial and industrial users, including data centers, for consistent and clean energy supply.
Regarding green hydrogen and ammonia initiatives, Mittal shared that their flagship project involves a green ammonia facility in Gopalpur, Odisha, with a capacity of 0.5 million tonnes per annum. Significant progress has been made on essential aspects such as land acquisition, renewable energy planning, power connectivity, financing arrangements, and technology selection. The ammonia process licensor is now onboard, and the basic engineering design package has been finalized. The project has also received design-stage pre-certification from TÜV Rheinland concerning relevant green hydrogen and EU Renewable Fuels of Non-Biological Origin (RFNBO) standards.
On the commercial side, Avaada is actively engaging with potential customers in Europe and Asia while exploring structured procurement avenues like H2Global. The next milestones for Avaada involve enhancing project bankability, solidifying long-term offtake agreements, optimizing renewable energy configurations, advancing financing, and moving towards a final investment decision (FID). The company aims to create a comprehensive renewable energy to green molecules platform targeting sectors such as fertilizers, refining, chemicals, shipping, and eventually steel.
Lastly, Mittal addressed the anticipated role of thermal power in meeting electricity demand amid constraints in gas supply and hydropower generation, asserting that the increase in thermal power procurement does not signify a setback in India’s energy transition. He recognizes the necessity of existing thermal capacity to ensure resource adequacy during the transition but argues that not every rise in demand must lead to new thermal capacity. He dismissed the outdated notion that every additional gigawatt of renewable energy requires a corresponding increase in thermal capacity, emphasizing that the industry has progressed from standalone solar solutions to integrated systems that combine solar, wind, battery storage, and advanced technologies for more reliable and dispatchable electricity. Therefore, the current evaluation should contrast firm and dispatchable renewable energy with new conventional capacity based on comparable delivery profiles and system costs.
