Kolhapur-based Ghodawat Energy Private Ltd (GEPL), part of Ghodawat Industries, will invest Rs 450-500 crore for setting up wind farms in southern states.
The company has an installed capacity of around 100 Mw and is planning to add another 150 Mw by 2012-13 with an investment of around Rs 900 crore, said Shrenik S Ghodawat managing director of GEPL.
Speaking to Business Standard on the sidelines of Renewable Energy Chennai 2009, Ghodawat said the company was looking at setting up wind farms at Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh in the south apart from Maharashtra and Gujarat.
“Of the total investment, Rs 400-500 crore will be in the southern states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka,” he said.
In Tamil Nadu, the company has started land acquisition at Udmalpet in Coimbatore district and is exploring Gadag district and surroundings in Karnataka. Its plan in Andhra Pradesh is still in the preliminary stage.
Ghodawat said the projects would be funded through equity (likely to be 50 per cent), internal accruals and debt. “We are talking to private equity funds and also planning to list the company in 2-3 years.” Its revenues at present stand at Rs 125 crore.
The company has manufactured two turbines at its Kolhapur facility and has set a target to manufacture 15 by March next year. This year, the facility would manufacture turbines with a capacity of 25 Mw. This would be scaled up to 100 Mw in two years and By 2012 end, it would manufacture 500 Mw turbines.
In the second phase, it would add another 500 Mw. The total investment till 2012-13 would be around Rs 400 crore and go into turbines, components and backward integration.
Initially, the Kolhapur facility would cater to the domestic market and enter exports from 2011 end. The company is scouting for partners in Africa and West Asia who would bring local marketing and licence expertise. “In six months, we would finalise the partners,” he added.
