Fourth Partner Energy raises $125 million from Norfund and The Rise Fund
Hyderabad-based Fourth Partner Energy has raised $125 million in equity funding from Norwegian Investment Fund, Norfund and existing shareholder The Rise Fund, TPG’s global impact investing platform.
Hyderabad-based Fourth Partner Energy has raised $125 million in equity funding from Norwegian Investment Fund, Norfund and existing shareholder The Rise Fund, TPG’s global impact investing platform. This $100 million marks Norfund’s maiden investment into India’s leading solar energy company, while The Rise Fund is investing an additional $25 Million into Fourth Partner, following its $70 Million investment in July 2018.
Focused on building and financing solar projects across commercial, industrial and institutional entities, Fourth Partner Energy is now strengthening its onsite and offsite solar presence in the subcontinent; as well as key markets across South and Southeast Asia. The company is targeting 3 GW of installed solar capacity by 2025 and expansion of capabilities across energy storage, EV charging infrastructure.
Talking about the new partnership and utilization of funds, Vivek Subramanian, Co-founder & Executive Director at Fourth Partner Energy said, “Norfund is an established, long-term, institutional investor with a strong global clean energy portfolio, committed to driving impact. We are keen on leveraging this round of funding and their expertise to further cement our leadership position. We also believe the C&I solar market in India is ripe for consolidation and are actively pursuing acquisition opportunities on this front. Our transformational relationship with TPG’s Rise Fund has enabled us to partner with high-quality, ESG-centric financiers like Norfund and we continue to seek to work with the best global institutions going ahead. We are grateful to team TPG for this reaffirmation and welcome Norfund into the Fourth Partner Energy family.”
Anders Blom, Vice President at Norfund explained the rationale behind investing in the Indian clean energy space adding, “Across Asia, Africa and Central America, Norfund has invested in and with companies like Globeleq, Scatec, Berkeley Energy Commercial and Industrial Solutions, d.Light and Yoma Micropower – which prioritize profitability while simultaneously addressing climate change, poverty alleviation and employment generation. Fourth Partner Energy is enabling decarbonization of the C&I sector in one of the most pivotal global markets. We are thrilled to partner with a business that is not just the industry leader but has adhered to high standards of business integrity, ESG and health & safety practices. We look forward to working with their core team and Rise Fund in helping achieve Fourth Partner’s 3GW target by 2025.”
“As the global community continues to tackle climate change, the Fourth Partner is leading India’s transition to renewable energy. The Rise Fund’s mission is to back businesses that help solve global issues like climate change while delivering attractive returns on investment. Since our initial investment, Fourth Partner has built a world-class team that consistently delivers strong fundamentals while focusing on high-quality customers and carbon aversion. We are excited to be investing additional capital into this platform and continuing to build an industry-leading distributed solar energy business in India. Norfund is a great addition to this team, as they share our commitment to strong corporate governance, impact and ESG,” added Ankur Thadani, Business Unit Partner at The Rise Fund.
Investec Capital Services India, Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas & Co and Dua & Associates were advisors to Fourth Partner Energy and TPG for this transaction, while Avendus Capital and Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas advised Norfund for the same.
In April 2021, Fourth Partner Energy secured a $33 Million line of mezzanine funding from the CDC Group; prior to which in 2020 the company announced a $15 million round of funding from Swiss climate action fund ResponsAbility and a $16 Million investment from a consortium of European lenders, led by Symbiotics.
To date, Fourth Partner Energy manages a portfolio of 550 MW across its distributed and open access solar portfolios. The company has commenced operations across Sri Lanka, Bangladesh and Vietnam. In Indonesia, 4PEL has tied up with integrated energy major Indika Energy to offer solar solutions to corporates there. The venture has executed projects for marquee clients like Walmart, Unilever, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Akzo Nobel, Schneider, Skoda, Ferrero, Mars, Airtel, D-Mart and ICICI Bank.
(Edited by : Pranati Deva)
First Published: Jun 30, 2021 3:07 PM IST
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