Mumbai-based Reliance Industries (RIL), through its subsidiary Reliance New Energy Solar Ltd., invested in German “green solar wafers” technology company NexWafe GmbH, and signed a pact with Danish company Stiesdal A/S for hydrogen electrolyzers, as part of a strategy to expand its clean energy portfolio.
The company invested 25 million euros in a Series C financing round in NexWafe. The investment makes RIL a strategic lead investor in the company, which develops and produces cost-effective monocrystalline silicon wafers, also known as green solar wafers. RIL will support NexWafe accelerate product, technology, and commercial development for the latter’s solar photovoltaic products.
Additionally, the two companies signed an ‘India Strategic Partnership Agreement’ that provides for joint technology development and commercialization, at scale, of high efficiency green solar wafers.
Separately, RIL signed a memorandum of understanding with Danish company Stiesdal A/S to partner and cooperate on the completion, development, and subsequent manufacturing in India of hydrogen electrolyzers. Steisdal will grant a technology license to Reliance for this purpose.
In a previous blog I had written about RIL’s acquisition of Norway-based REC Solar Holdings AS.
In August, RIL made its first strategic move in the renewable energy sector with an investment of $144 million in Marlborough, MA-based energy storage company Ambri Inc.
CEO Mukesh Ambani has ambitious plans of investing $1 billion over the next three years to build a new clean energy business to fuel the company’s commitment to be net carbon neutral by 2035.
