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Funding and M&A Roundup: Matrix Renewables Secures $322 Million Debt Funding


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					</table><p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/rumsl-i170-mw-solar-project-neemuch/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Rewa Ultra Mega Solar (RUMSL) has issued a request for proposal to develop a 170 MW grid-connected ground-mounted solar photovoltaic project in the Neemuch Solar Park</strong></a> in Madhya Pradesh. The power generated from the project will be procured by Madhya Pradesh Power Management Company and West Central Railway. The last date to submit bids is June 07, 2024. Bids will be opened on the same day. RUMSL / Government of Madhya Pradesh will provide land for the project’s development on the terms and conditions specified in the relevant land use agreement.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/cerc-grants-citing-force-majeure-events/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission relaxed rules, allowing ACME Solar to switch the connectivity of its 300 MW solar power project to the land route</strong></a>, considering their substantial progress and commitment to the project. The Commission also noted that failure to achieve financial closure or compliance with the order would revoke connectivity if the 10% equity release is not attained. ACME Solar Holdings and ACME Sikar Solar submitted a petition under Section 79 of the Electricity Act, 2003. Central Transmission Utility of India was the respondent in the case.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/hitachi-energy-1-5-billion-transformer-facility/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Hitachi Energy will ramp up its global manufacturing capacity for transformers with a $1.5 billion investment by 2027, as a long queue for grid interconnections</strong></a>, particularly from renewables, is driving up demand. The investment, which comes in addition to a 2020 announcement of a $3 billion injection in manufacturing capacity, will span across Europe, the Americas, and Asia, the company said in a press release. Transformers are a key component for integrating renewables into the grid as they help regulate voltage and ensure grid stability.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-aims-to-slash-grid-interconnection-months-by-2030/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>The U.S. Department of Energy has introduced a comprehensive roadmap to expedite the integration of clean energy sources into the national transmission grid.</strong></a> The Transmission Interconnection Roadmap outlines solutions for aligning interconnection processes with the increasing demand for renewable energy resources, which is driven by the rapid and widespread transition to clean energy. The Interconnection Innovation e-Xchange roadmap, released in April 2024, offers a range of solutions to diverse interconnection stakeholders, addressing both short-term and long-term challenges in the transmission system interconnection process.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/us-solar-ppa-prices-europe-sees-drop-of-5/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Following years of fluctuation in the energy market, power purchase agreement prices in North America were stable during the first quarter of 2024.</strong></a> P25 solar and wind PPA offer prices increased less than 1% during the quarter, according to a recent report from LevelTen Energy. Specifically, P25 solar PPA prices experienced a modest decline of 1.5% over the quarter, while P25 wind prices saw a slight increase of 2.4% LevelTen’s P25 Price Index represents the 25<sup>th</sup> percentile PPA prices. All PPA price data in LevelTen’s report are based on the prices developers offer for PPA contracts, not the transacted PPA prices.</p>


Daily News Wrap-Up: RUMSL Invites Bids to Develop 170 MW Solar Project


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					</table><p><a href="https://www.hitachienergy.com/in/en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hitachi Energy</a>, a subsidiary of Japan-based conglomerate <a href="https://www.hitachi.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hitachi</a>, will ramp up its global manufacturing capacity for transformers with a $1.5 billion investment by 2027, as a <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/renewable-projects-bogged-down-by-transmission" target="_blank" rel="noopener">long queue</a> for grid interconnections, particularly from renewables, is driving up demand.</p>
<p>The investment, which comes in addition to a 2020 announcement of a $3 billion injection in manufacturing capacity, will span across Europe, the Americas, and Asia, the company said in a press release.</p>
<p>Transformers are a key component for integrating renewables into the grid as they help regulate voltage and ensure grid stability. They are also used to integrate energy storage systems with renewables.</p>
<p>&#8220;The demand for transformers and electrical equipment has grown at an unprecedented scale, and we are investing to address our customers&#8217; mid- and long-term needs,&#8221; said Bruno Melles, managing director of the transformers business at Hitachi Energy.</p>
<p>The company said it is expanding two transformer manufacturing facilities in the U.S. and one in Colombia. It invested about €30 million (~$32 million) in the expansion and modernization of its power transformer manufacturing facility in Germany in February of this year.</p>
<p>It also announced an investment of $180 million in a new transformer factory in the Vaasa region of Finland.</p>
<p>Extended lead times to procure transformers are a significant cause of delay in renewable project development.</p>
<p>Hitachi Energy was formed in 2020 when Hitachi acquired a majority stake in <a href="https://global.abb/group/en" target="_blank" rel="noopener">ABB</a>&#8216;s Power Grids business. Previously called Hitachi ABB Power Grids, it was later rebranded as Hitachi Energy.</p>
<p>It claims to be the world&#8217;s largest transformer manufacturer in terms of installed base and manufacturing capacity, with over 60 transformer factories and service centers.</p>
<p>In 2022, Hitachi Energy&#8217;s India arm was <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/daily-news-wrap-up-hitachi-to-supply-transformers-for-ntpc" target="_blank" rel="noopener">awarded</a> a contract by NTPC Renewable Energy to supply power transformers for a 4.75 GW renewable energy park in Gujarat. The company was asked to provide 315 MVA 400/33/33 kV transformers manufactured at its transformers factory in Vadodara.</p>


Hitachi Energy Invests $1.5 Billion to Meet Surging Transformer Demand


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					</table><p>Here are some noteworthy cleantech announcements of the day from around the world:</p>
<p><strong>The New and Renewable Energy Development Corporation of Andhra Pradesh (</strong><a href="https://www.nredcap.in/Default.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>NREDCAP</strong></a><strong>) issued the levelized tariff for the empanelment of bidders to implement grid-connected rooftop solar</strong> systems in Andhra Pradesh under the renewable energy service company (RESCO) model for 25 years. The rooftop systems with capacities of 10-49 kW, 50-99 kW, and 100-499 kW, under net metering, will have a levelized tariff of ₹4.98 (~$0.062)/kWh. The levelized tariff for rooftop solar systems of 500-1,000 kW is ₹4.48 (~$0.056)/kWh. Systems above 1,000 kW for in-house captive use will have a levelized tariff of ₹4.35 (~$0.054)/kWh.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.hpxindia.com/index.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>Hindustan Power Exchange</strong></a><strong> announced that it has reached a daily market share of 37% in the Contingency Market Segment and crossed 100 million units (MU) of traded volume in two weeks</strong> since its commencement.  The Central Electricity Regulatory Commission (CERC) recently <a href="https://mercomindia.com/cerc-methodology-price-discovery-hindustan-power-exchange/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">approved</a> its operation and directed the exchange to use the ‘Uniform Price Step Auction’ as a matching methodology for price discovery in daily and weekly contracts.</p>
<p><strong>Hitachi Energy </strong><a href="https://www.hitachienergy.com/in/en/news/press-releases/2022/07/hitachi-energy-selected-to-help-bring-almost-50-percent-more-power-to-20-million-people-in-india" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>announced</strong></a><strong> it won a major order from Adani Electricity Mumbai Infra, a subsidiary of Adani Transmission, to provide a high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission system</strong> to link Kudus, a village in Maharashtra, to Mumbai. The city is seeing peak demand increasing to 3,850 MW in 2022, of which around 2,100 MW was supplied from outside sources. The new HVDC link would supply up to 1,000 MW of electricity, increasing power from outside the city by almost 50%. The link is expected to strengthen the existing transmission infrastructure and help Adani to ensure a reliable power supply in the region.</p>
<p><strong>NTPC </strong><a href="https://pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID=1843454" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>signed</strong></a><strong> a Statement of Intent (SoI) with NITI Aayog to develop the Net Zero GHG emissions Roadmap for NTPC.</strong> The SoI seeks to formalize a framework of cooperation to facilitate NTPC to strategize on diversification of its generation mix to eventually reduce its carbon footprint and support India&#8217;s endeavor towards achieving net zero by 2070. With 17% of the country&#8217;s installed generation capacity, NTPC meets around 24% of the country’s power requirement. With this collaboration, NTPC would be able to utilize the expertise of NITI Aayog’s energy team for the following: Development of a Net Zero GHG emissions Roadmap for NTPC to align with the Government of India’s ‘Panchamrit’ goals; Emissions, and energy (portfolio mix) modeling including development of scenarios for 2030, 2037, 2047 and 2070; and Assistance in the establishment of the Carbon Management Unit (CMU) in NTPC to integrate all GHG reduction initiatives under one umbrella</p>
<p><strong>Opdenergy, an independent renewable energy producer, </strong><a href="https://opdenergy.com/en/2022/07/19/opdenergy-closes-a-corporate-debt-facility-for-an-amount-of-e250-million-with-eig-and-generali-global-infrastructure/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>closed</strong></a><strong> a new corporate debt facility of up to €250 million (~$254.79 million) for the issuance of new senior bonds</strong> with EIG, an institutional investor in the global energy and infrastructure sectors, and Generali Global Infrastructure (GGI) on behalf of GGI’s funds. The 2021 financing facility precedes this agreement with EIG for issuing euro-denominated senior bonds in a principal amount of up to €140 million (~$142.68 million) (2021 Bonds). The firm’s purpose with the capital raised is to redeem the 2021 Bonds (including accrued and unpaid interest) and partially fund the transaction costs related to this new financing for an aggregate amount of approximately €143.7 million (~$146.50 million). It also seeks to have access to further capital to finance its short to medium-term growth strategy with €106.3 million (~$108.37 million).</p>
<p><strong>Fluence Energy, an energy storage company, </strong><a href="https://ir.fluenceenergy.com/news-releases/news-release-details/fluence-and-munch-energie-are-building-hybrid-storage-plant" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>announced</strong></a><strong> that it would supply a combined 11.7 MW/34 MWh battery-based energy storage system to Münch Energie,</strong> a decentralized energy supplier, and developer of photovoltaic power plants in Germany. The project, scheduled for completion in April 2023, will co-locate Fluence’s Gridstack energy storage product with a 34 MW solar plant in Merseburg, in eastern Germany. In May this year, the project was awarded a contract in the Innovation Tender run by the German Federal Network Agency (Bundesnetzagentur). Once completed, the project would be directly connected to the electricity grid via a specially built transformer station, enabling Münch Energie to participate in the secondary reserve market. It is expected to produce enough energy to supply 5,000 households with renewable, low-cost energy for an entire day.</p>


Daily News Wrap-Up: Andhra Pradesh Issues Levelized Tariff for Rooftop Solar

<p>Here are some noteworthy cleantech announcements of the day from around the world:</p>
<p><strong>ATCO Group, through its investment in Canadian Utilities Limited, </strong><a href="https://www.atco.com/en-ca/about-us/news/2022/122951-atco-group-and-microsoft-announce-long-term-renewable-energy-pow.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>entered</strong></a><strong> into a 15-year power purchase agreement with Microsoft Corporation.</strong> Under the agreement, Microsoft will purchase all renewable energy generated by ATCO&#8217;s Deerfoot solar facility in Calgary, Alberta. The 37 MW solar project at the facility is adjacent to ATCO&#8217;s 27 MW Barlow project. Construction for both projects is set to begin this spring, with energization in the fourth quarter of 2022. Combined, the facilities will generate enough renewable electricity to offset 68,000 tonnes of carbon a year.</p>
<p><strong>Nestlé Pure Life </strong><a href="https://www.yellowdoorenergy.com/news/nestle-pure-life-yellow-door-energy-switch-on-solar-carport/" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>commissioned</strong></a><strong> a solar power plant to generate 2.4 GWh of electricity, on a carport, at its production facility in Dubai with Yellow Door Energy.</strong> The solar carport would help reduce carbon emissions by one million kilograms per year. Yellow Door Energy will provide the solar lease, enabling Nestlé Pure Life to switch to renewable energy and reduce its electricity costs. The carport structure is six meters high and provides shading for 72 Nestlé Waters distribution trucks. Over 2,500 solar panels have been installed to meet 80% of the factory’s energy consumption, and robots will be used to regularly clean the panels’ surfaces to maximize energy generation efficiency and optimize visual aesthetics.</p>
<p><strong>Hitachi Energy India </strong><a href="https://www.hitachienergy.com/in/en/news/press-releases/2022/04/hitachi-energy-wins-inr-160-cr-order-from-mp-power-transmission-package-ii-limited-to-modernize-the-madhya-pradesh-power-grid" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>announced</strong></a><strong> that it won an order worth about ₹1.6 billion (~$21 million) from Madhya Pradesh Power Transmission Package-II Limited</strong>, a project-specific business to strengthen the transmission system in the rural areas of Madhya Pradesh. The company will work to increase capacity and improve the reliability of the power infrastructure. The order was booked for nine grid connections in the last quarter, strengthening a power transmission network spanning more than 1,000 kilometers of overhead lines across nine rural districts of Madhya Pradesh.</p>
<p><strong>The Australian government </strong><a href="https://www.bp.com/en_au/australia/home/media/press-releases/bp-welcomes-federal-funding-for-green-hydrogen-hub-at-kwinana-western-australia.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>announced</strong></a><strong> an investment of AUD 70 million (~$52 million) funding for a green hydrogen hub at bp’s Kwinana site in Western Australia.</strong> The hydrogen hub is being developed in partnership with Macquarie Group. It will include the installation of an electrolyzer of at least 75 MW, hydrogen storage, compression and truck loading facilities, and upgrades to bp’s existing on-site hydrogen pipeline. The hydrogen produced will support domestic and export demand, including hydrogen supply for bp’s renewable fuels production, ammonia, metals and minerals processing, on-site gas blending, and hydrogen for heavy-duty transport.</p>
<p><strong>Plug Power, a provider of turnkey hydrogen solutions, </strong><a href="https://www.ir.plugpower.com/press-releases/news-details/2022/Plug-Supplies-Walmart-with-Green-Hydrogen-to-Fuel-Retailers-Fleet-of-Material-Handling-Lift-Trucks/default.aspx" target="_blank" rel="noopener"><strong>announced</strong></a><strong> an agreement with Walmart Inc. for an option to deliver up to 20 tons per day of liquid green hydrogen to power material handling lift trucks </strong>across Walmart distribution and fulfillment centers in the U.S. The liquid green hydrogen produced will fuel up to 9,500 lift trucks and support the retailer’s goal of a zero-emissions future by 2040. Plug Power intends to deliver green hydrogen to Walmart facilities using a fleet of liquid transport it has put into service using capabilities gained from its recent acquisition of Applied Cryo Technologies.</p>


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