Brookfield proposes massive investment in renewable energy sector in Andhra

Brookfield, a global owner and operator of real assets, has proposed to invest massively in Andhra Pradesh in the next three to five years in renewable energy, focusing on wind and solar formats.

A delegation from the Canadian company met Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu on Tuesday in Amaravati and proposed to build the renewable energy projects, a state government official said. 

"Brookfield officials did call on the Chief Minister and expressed desire to examine investment opportunities in Andhra Pradesh," the official confirmed to PTI. However, he said he could not comment on the quantum of investment. 

Meanwhile, K Ravi Kumar Reddy, Chairman, Evren, a joint venture between Brookfield and Axis Energy Group, said, the platform envisages to invest over Rs 50,000 crore in the next three to five years in the southern state. 

Evren aims to install 1,380 MW of solar power capacity and 1,640 MW of wind power capacity by 2026, Reddy said. 

It already operates 210 MW of wind power assets in Andhra Pradesh.

Further, he said that the joint venture envisages to add 828 MW of solar power capacity and 204 MW of wind power capacity in 2027. 

It also plans to install 1,311 MW of solar power capacity and 3,300 MW of wind power capacity beyond 2027 with the ambition to achieve 8,873 MW of joint solar and wind capacities in total. 

"These projects will mostly come up in the Rayalaseema region. We have to procure land for wind energy projects…We are very committed," Reddy said, adding that Kurnool and Anantapur could feature in the larger scheme of things.

The Evren chairman said the company is keen to speed up these investments and observed that every MW can create one job, hinting at the employment potential.

Further, Reddy pointed out that the company has already harvested four years worth of wind data to assess the viability and intensity of wind energy to generate renewable power in the southern state.

Evren is a brand of ABC Clean Tech Company, which is 51 per cent owned by Brookfield and 49% by Axis Energy Group.