Actis' Ostro Energy to invest $230 million in renewable energy space

MUMBAI: Global private equity fund Actis will invest $230 million, or about Rs 1,380 crore, in India through its newly created renewable energy platform Ostro Energy and has roped in Ranjit Gupta as its chief executive officer.

Ostro's first project will be Tejuva, a 50.4 mega-watt wind energy project that is already under construction in the Jaisalmer district of Rajasthan.

Ostro targets to provide 800 MW of capacity across several Indian states by 2019.

Actis, which invests in emerging markets, had created similar platforms across the globe, including Globeleq Meso America in Central America, Zuma Energia in Mexico, Aela Energia in Chile and Atlantic Renovaveis in Brazil.

The firm has so far invested $1.9 billion in 27 energy transactions across 21 countries since 2002.

"With shortages of coal and gas, plus the environmental and social challenges associated with hydro and thermal projects, renewable energy is fast becoming critical to the energy supply equation in India," said Torbjorn Caesar, partner and co-head of energy at Actis. "We are delighted to help extend and diversify India's wind energy footprint, drawing on our deep understanding of both India and the energy sector," he said.

Ostro Energy CEO Ranjit Gupta said acquisition of Tejuva project is the first step towards the firm's objective of becoming a leading wind power company in India. "We are looking forward to working with Actis to bring the project to full capacity this year and grow the company's project pipeline to achieve our business plan objectives," he said.

Actis, with a growing portfolio of investments in Asia, Africa and Latin America, now manages $7.6 billion, or about Rs 47,225 crore.