Wind Farm Developers in India put aggressive capacity plans in place (Caparo,Greenko,Genting,Techno Electric)

Wind Power in India has shown sharp growth in 2010 and looks to have a bright future with a number of wind farm developers investing aggressively to expand capacity.Wind Turbine Companies have also been putting up factories in India to catch a slice of the world’s fifth largest wind energy market.Even Chinese companies like Dongfang and Shanghai Electric have managed to win contracts from power companies like KSK Energy.Greenko one of the first Green Utilities in India is raising funds to put even more wind turbines in India while Caparo has the biggest expansion plans in place.CLP which is the largest wind energy capacity owner in India too is plowing ahead with plans to add to the wind capacity.The most surprising entry is by Malaysian casino developer Genting which has raised debt from HSBC to put up a 92 MW Wind Farm in India.

Techno-Electric is another company which is looking to invest in wind farms in India.However Wind Energy in India is not without its problems.Most of the high wind sites have already been  taken and now the wind turbine companies have introduced wind turbines suitable for low wind velocity sites.There are also teething problems as most of the state distribution companies have massive billion dollar accumulated losses which are expected to double in the next  5 years.Getting timely payments from these discoms has become a huge hurdle for private power companies.However India’s huge energy deficit and rising costs of fossil fuels makes wind energy a lucrative opportunity over the medium to long term.

Caparo Energy –  Note Caparo Energy is a part of the Caparo Group led by Lord Swaraj Paul one of the richest Indians based out of UK .CEIL raised £52 million in October 2010 by listing on London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM).Caparo intends to acquire and develop a portfolio of wind farms with a target total annual installed capacity of up to 5,000 MW, which it intends to develop in two concurrent phases: Phase I consisting of 3,000 MW with a target completion date of 2016; and Phase II consisting of 2,000 MW with a target completion date of 2017

Gamesa, Caparo India units in $2 bn deal on wind turbines

Power producer Caparo Energy (India) Ltd (CEIL) has placed a $2 billion (Rs. 9,000 crore) order with the Indian unit of Spanish wind turbine maker Gamesa Corp. Tecnologica SA for the supply of turbines to generate 2,000 megawatts (MW) of wind power in what the two firms billed as the largest deal of its kind in India.

The contract entails supply and commissioning of turbines by the end of 2016, starting with around 150MW in the first phase of the agreement in the fourth quarter of the next calendar year.

Malaysia’s Genting Wins Loans From HSBC for Indian Wind Project

Genting Bhd., the Malaysian gaming company that is Asia’s third-biggest casino operator by market value, won loans from HSBC Holdings Plc to develop a wind power project in India.

HSBC and one other bank have agreed to lend to the 92- megawatt project being built in western Gujarat state, Manav Futnani, associate director of project and export finance at HSBC, said in an interview in New Delhi during the Euromoney Renewable Energy Finance Forum today.

The project will use turbines made by Denmark’s Vestas Wind Systems A/S, the world’s biggest wind-turbine maker. Denmark’s export credit agency Eksport Kredit Fonden will back part of the debt, Futnani said.

Greenko eyes boost from India’s clean power push

India-based Greenko, founded by President Mahesh Kolli and Chief Executive Anil Chalamalasetty in 2006, is targeting an operational capacity of 1 gigawatt (GW) by 2014, nearly five times its current base of 183 megawatts (MW).

Earlier on Wednesday, Greenko announced agreements to add a cumulative 650 MW to its windpower portfolio, taking its total wind assets in development past the 1 GW mark. Its total portfolio of operational assets and assets under development, including wind and hydro projects, now stands at 1.63 GW.