Leading Asian C&I solar provider, CleanMax, receives financing from GCPF for expansion into Southeast Asia

Jul 02, 2020

2 July 2020 — The Global Climate Partnership Fund (GCPF) and CleanMax announced the closure of a transaction today, which will enable the commercial and industrial (C&I) solar leader to expand its operations into Southeast Asia, targeting Thailand as its first new market.

With a total facility size of USD 10m, of which USD 5m is already committed, CleanMax has engaged solid off-takers, including a 3.5 MW rooftop solar plant for a leading multi-billion dollar conglomerate.

As the biggest C&I solar player in India and the UAE, CleanMax has completed over 500 projects with over 150 corporate clients and has an operating capacity of over 600 MW, with another 200MW expected to be built over the next 12 months.

Thailand represents a great opportunity for CleanMax to expand its footprint into Southeast Asia, as the country has a large commercial and industrial base and a mostly untapped C&I solar market. And as the C&I consumers in Thailand are generally charged the highest grid electricity tariffs, they are expected to be the biggest adopters of decentralized solar solutions in the next few years as a cheaper alternative.

The transaction is a perfect fit for GCPF as it supports the development of the C&I sector in the region, where local commercial bank financing is typically not yet available for similar projects.

Speaking on behalf of GCPF, Antonia Schaeli, Principal for Climate Finance, explained: “We are excited to be part of CleanMax’s expansion into Thailand and to promote commercial and industrial clients’ access to renewable sources. Given its extensive track record in India and its intrinsic knowledge of the C&I space, CleanMax is the ideal partner for the delivery of solar solutions to corporate clients.”

Nikunj Ghodawat, CFO of CleanMax had this to add, “Corporates are quickly adopting renewables sourcing at scale to achieve the twin benefits of cost savings and carbon footprint reduction. We are excited to be be partnering with a reputed global financer in the Global Climate Partnership Fund with whose support we are able to expand our offerings into the Southeast Asian markets starting with Thailand.”

CONTACTS

CleanMax
Vikram Salvekar
E-mail: vikram.salvekar@cleanmax.com

Global Climate Partnership Fund S.A., SICAV-SIF
14, Boulevard Royal
L-2449 Luxembourg
info@gcpf.lu

ABOUT CleanMax

CleanMax is Asia’s largest provider of solar power to corporates and Institutions. The company was founded in 2011, and since then, CleanMax has successfully installed more than 500 projects for over 150 corporates, with total operating capacity of more than 600 MW. With clients spanning sectors such as Automotive, Education, Pharmaceuticals, Food & Beverages, and Information Technology, the company develops projects on a turnkey “Energy Sale” or PPA model, providing power on a per-kWh basis, under long-term Power Purchase Agreements, at rates cheaper than prevailing grid tariffs.

CleanMax was the first Indian company to win the prestigious Transformational Business Awards 2018 by Financial Times (FT) and International Finance Corporation (IFC) in the ‘Achievement in Transformational Infrastructure’ category. CleanMax has been recognized by the Ministry of New & Renewable Energy (Government of India) with National Excellence Awards for Rooftop Solar Developer and Rooftop Solar EPC Player in 2016.

The company has already expanded its portfolio in the Middle East and is exploring further expansion in other South-East Asian countries. For more information, log onto www.cleanmax.com

About the Global Climate Partnership Fund (GCPF)

The Global Climate Partnership Fund is an investment company under Luxembourg law. It was established by the German Federal Ministry for the Environment, Nature Conservation and Nuclear Safety (BMU) and KfW Entwicklungsbank in 2009 as a public-private partnership and has since attracted investments from a number of public and private investors including ASN Bank, Ärzteversorgung Westfalen-Lippe, DANIDA, FMO, IFC, OeEB, Sparkasse Bremen, EIB and Heilsarmee. GCPF is managed by responsAbility Investments.

GCPF tackles the shortage of appropriate financing for low-carbon projects in developing economies by financing energy efficiency and renewable energy projects for SMEs and private households, primarily in cooperation with local financial institutions, but also directly. Through its Technical Assistance Facility, GCPF provides know-how and project support for partner institutions to develop their green lending portfolio and bring projects to fruition. GCPF is managed by responsAbility Investments.

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This information was produced by responsAbility Investments AG together with its partners to the best of its knowledge and belief. However, responsAbility Investments AG provides no guarantee with regards to its content and completeness and does not accept any liability for losses which might arise from making use of this information. The opinions expressed in this information material are those of responsAbility Investments AG at the time of writing and are subject to change at any time without notice. If nothing is indicated to the contrary, all figures are unaudited. This material is provided for information purposes only. It does not constitute an offer or a recommendation to buy or sell financial instruments or services and does not release the recipient from exercising his/her own judgment. It is expressly not intended for persons who, due to their nationality or place of residence, are not permitted access to such information under local law.

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