AUGUST 20239WAAREE ENERGIES RAISES 1,000 CRORE IN EQUITY FUNDINGONGC PLANS OIL-TO-CHEMICAL PLANTS IN PIVOT TOWARDS ENERGY TRANSITIONManufacturer of solar panels Waaree Energies reported raising nearly Rs 1,000 crore in a second round of equity finance sponsored by investment firm ValueQuest. The cash will be used to add another 6 GW of capacity expansion to the existing 12 GW, according to the official press release."The extra 6 GW capacity will be used to produce solar ingots, wafers, cells, and modules. In addition to the PLI Tranche II award of Rs 1,923 crore from the Central government, this equity investment was made, it was said.The company also intends to implement backward integration in the production of solar cells with a 5.4 GW capacity. It will be able to produce 20 GW of modules, 11.4 GW of cells, and 6 GW of wafers during the next two years."We believe that this money will help us grow, increase our market share, and promote positive change in the shift to renewable energy. Hitesh Doshi, Chairman & Managing Director at Waaree Energies, stated, "We appreciate the continuous support from ValueQuest. Waaree Energies had previously raised an initial round of funding for around Rs 1,040 crore from a variety of investors, including as family offices. ONGC, plans to build two oil-to-chemical plants in India to transform crude oil directly into high-value chemical products as it gets ready for the global energy shift, according to chairman Arun Kumar Singh. One of the main sources of energy is crude oil, which businesses like ONGC extract from underground reservoirs and the seabed. In oil refineries, it is processed to create jet fuel, diesel, and petrol. Companies all around the world are exploring for innovative ways to use crude oil as the world looks to move away from fossil fuels.Detergents, fibres, polythene, and other man-made plastics are all produced using petrochemicals, which are chemical compounds obtained from crude oil. "The demand for petrochemicals is expected to remain strong and will continue to be a key driver of oil and gas demand in the future," Singh stated in the company's most recent annual report. "ONGC is working with other organisations to investigate potential in the oil to chemical (O2C), refining, and petrochemicals sectors with this goal in mind. Additionally, we want to build two new O2C facilities in India.The company already operates petrochemical facilities at Mangalore in Karnataka and Dahej in Gujarat through its two subsidiaries, Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals and ONGC Petro-Additions Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) stated in the 2022­23 annual report that "MRPL and OPaL are strongly engaged in the diversification plan from oil to the petro-chemical sector." In order to investigate potential in the oil to chemical and oil to petrochemical industries, ONGC is also collaborating with other parties. TOP STORIES
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