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ReNew Power, NTPC eye PTC India's wind power business

Mumbai: ReNew Power Ltd, India’s largest clean energy company, and state-run power utility NTPC Ltd have shown interest in the ongoing sale process of PTC India Ltd’s wind power business , said two people aware of the development, requesting anonymity.

“ReNew Power and NTPC have been involved in talks with the company for the last few weeks and the two are expected to soon submit binding bids for acquiring the assets. One or two other financial investors could also put a binding bid for the assets," said the first person cited above.

The sale could fetch a valuation of around ₹ 2,000 crore, he said. The investment banking arm of KPMG is managing the sale process, the person added.

The process had also seen interest from other buyers such as the local arm of CLP Holdings Ltd, Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA) and Hero Future Energies, Mint reported on 11 January.

Spokespersons for KPMG and ReNew Power declined to comment.

Emailed queries sent to NTPC on Wednesday remained unanswered.

“PTC India Ltd is considering various options for funding growth of its subsidiary PTC Energy Ltd (PEL), including getting a suitable strategic investor on board. KPMG is advising PTC in this matter," a PTC India spokesperson said in an emailed response.

Mint first reported the sale process on 7 January.

PTC India’s subsidiary, PTC Energy Ltd, has around 290 megawatts (MW) of wind assets across Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

Mint had on 23 August 2018 reported that PTC India was considering exiting its wind energy business as the power trader did not want to invest more in it, considering that the industry was moving from feed-in tariffs to auctions.

India’s wind sector has transitioned from a feed-in tariff regime, which ensured a fixed price for wind power producers, to tariff-based competitive auctions. Access to low-cost finance is a key competitive advantage in an auction-based system.

In addition, falling tariffs have also pushed the industry towards consolidation.

Several renewable energy deals are in the works in the Indian market.

Mint reported earlier this year that Morgan Stanley was looking to exit its stake in wind energy platform Continuum Wind Energy .