Financial Times (FT) and International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group announced CleanMax Solar as the winner in ‘Achievement in Transformational Infrastructure’ at the Transformational Business Awards 2018.
The company was selected from among 189 entries received from 126 countries, and received the award for its rooftop solar project at the Tata Motors factory in Sanand, Gujarat.
CleanMax Solar in a statement said that it is the first Indian company ever to win the award. The award was presented by Stephanie Race, CEO, Crop Performance Ltd. to Mr. Kuldeep Jain, Founder and Managing Director of CleanMax Solar, during the awards ceremony held in London.
This is the fifth edition of the FT/IFC Transformational Business Awards, the global programme highlighting innovative, long-term private sector solutions to major development challenges.
In 2015, CleanMax Solar provided a solar rooftop solution to the Tata Motors facility where the Tata Nano car is manufactured. The rooftop solar plant was developed on a “build-own-operate” model, which enabled Tata Motors to switch to solar power in zero-capex and risk-free manner.
Through this project, Tata Motors not only reduces its carbon footprint by 2700 tons annually for a period of 25 years, but also locks in a large fraction of its electricity cost from solar power, at a discount to grid electricity tariffs. It is estimated that Tata Motors is saving INR 3 million annually from the project. The solar plant has also reduced the indoor temperature of the factory and generated long-term local employment opportunities.
Commenting on the award, Kuldeep Jain, Founder and Managing Director, CleanMax Solar, said, “We are extremely humbled and honoured to receive this prestigious and globally recognised award from Financial Times and IFC. It gives us motivation to continue working towards a sustainable future by providing innovative solutions which are also viable for corporates. I would like to thank FT/IFC Jury members for recognizing our endeavours and also all the employees and stakeholders at CleanMax Solar who work relentlessly to ensure quality project delivery.”
He added, “IFC is one of the most recognised solar lenders in the middle east, and has lent to numerous prestigious utility scale projects in the region. The fact that IFC and the World Bank back Clean Max Solar already goes a long way to establish CleanMax’ credibility and capability in the region, and the FT/IFC award will only go further in validating those strengths. We’ve had a good start in the Middle East, a market we service out of the Dubai office we set up last year. We have closed many MWp’s of rooftop solar projects under our zero capital Build Own Operate (BOO) Model, where CleanMax Solar develops projects on a turnkey basis, delivering solar power supply on a per-kWh basis to corporates and institutions. We already have both locally based as well as international groups as our clients and are on course to win many more in the near future.”
CleanMax Solar has installed more than 250 projects for over 70 corporates in India, with combined rooftop capacity of 100 MW, and has also commissioned more than 300 MW of grid connected solar farms for its corporate consumers. CleanMax Solar’s investors include Warburg Pincus, the global private equity firm, as well as International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group, and was IFC’s first rooftop solar investee globally.
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