By 2030, the entrepreneur wants to single-handedly increase India’s solar capacity by 100 gigawatts.
(Photo: imago / Hindustan Times)
Bangkok Asia’s richest man wants to drive the energy transition in his home country India with German help. With his industrial conglomerate Reliance, Mukesh Ambani has secured access to the technology of the Baden-Württemberg start-up Nexwafe. The multi-billionaire wants to use the strategic partnership to start mass production of cheap solar cells – as part of his plan to single-handedly increase India’s solar capacity by 100 gigawatts by 2030.
Nexwafe, a spin-off from the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems, is working on a novel process for the cost-effective manufacture of silicon wafers that are used in photovoltaic systems. According to its own information, the start-up expects that the production costs can be drastically reduced with the patented technology and that solar power can establish itself as the cheapest form of renewable energy.
As part of the deal, Ambani’s solar subsidiary Reliance New Energy Solar is leading a € 39 million investment in the six-year-old startup. The Indians are contributing 25 million euros, as the Mumbai Group announced on Wednesday night. The rest comes from the EU initiative Inno-Energy and the Saudi Arabian venture capitalist Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures.
Reliance – India’s largest listed company – is planning to build large-scale wafer production facilities in India that will work with the processes developed by Nexwafe. “Our investment in Nexwafe is an important step to accelerate India’s green energy transition and position India as a world leader in photovoltaic production,” said Ambani, according to a press release. He is assuming that the technology from Germany will give himself a considerable advantage over existing photovoltaic technologies, he added.
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Nexwafe is currently working in Freiburg on further developing its prototypes for commercial applications. The company promises savings of around 30 percent in wafer production compared to conventional manufacturing processes. With the strategic partnership, Reliance can now bring the innovation to India, said Davor Sutija, who has been running the start-up since last year.
“Solar energy more than just a business opportunity”
Reliance boss Ambani, who operates the world’s largest oil refinery in the Indian state of Gujarat, announced in June that it would invest ten billion dollars in an ecological reorientation of its group over the next three years. At the center of his plan is the construction of a 20 square kilometer industrial complex in which Ambani wants to produce solar cells, battery storage systems, fuel cells and green hydrogen. With the production of photovoltaic systems, he plans to provide almost a quarter of India’s 450 gigawatt total renewable energy target by 2030.
With the strategy, Ambani is also trying to cast off its reputation as a polluter. His group is currently one of the largest CO2 emitters in India. However, Ambani wants the company to become climate neutral by 2035. “For Reliance, our foray into solar energy is much more than just a business opportunity,” said the 64-year-old on the occasion of the agreement with Nexwafe. “It is our way of looking after planet earth and contributing to the global mission to save it from the looming climate crisis.”
At the weekend Ambani had already announced the purchase of a 40 percent stake in the Indian solar specialist Sterling & Wilson for more than 300 million dollars and the takeover of the Norwegian solar module manufacturer REC Solar for 771 million dollars. REC has manufacturing facilities in Norway and Singapore and plans to have additional plants in France and the United States. The company’s technology, like Nexwafe’s processes, will be used in Ambani’s solar plans in India.
Annual production of ten gigawatts planned
In a first step, the billionaire is planning a four-gigawatt photovoltaic factory, which will then be expanded to an annual production of ten gigawatts. The total installed photovoltaic capacity in India is currently around 40 gigawatts. Coal-fired power plants currently still supply around 70 percent of India’s electricity.
Ambani, whose estimated fortune topped the $ 100 billion mark for the first time a few days ago, has recently been convinced that India must get rid of fossil fuels as soon as possible. “Climate change is the greatest challenge facing humanity,” he said. “The only option is a quick transition to a green era.”
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