DECEMBER 20238AMPIN & JUPITER TO CREATE 1.3 GW SOLAR VENTURE IN INDIAAmpIn Energy Transition, previously known as Amp Energy India and a significant player in India's Independent Power Producer (IPP) sector, has unveiled a strategic alliance with Jupiter International Limited to create a joint venture exclusively dedicated to solar panel manufacturing. This partnership marks a crucial move to enhance India's solar cell and module production capacity, ultimately fostering self-sufficiency in the renewable energy industry.Within this joint venture (JV), the two partners will establish an advanced manufacturing facility with a focus on producing up to 1.3 gigawatts (GW) of high-quality solar cells and modules. This initiative is in line with the Indian government's Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) Tranche-II program, which is designed to boost domestic manufacturing, reduce global supply chain vulnerabilities, and decrease India's dependence on solar imports. AmpIn's venture into manufacturing is geared towards gaining control over the supply chain for critical components. This strategic move resonates with the growing demand for solar cells made in India.Jupiter International Limited, which already operates an 800 MW solar cell manufacturing facility in Himachal Pradesh, brings more than 15 years of experience producing efficient solar cells. This partnership harnesses Jupiter's expertise and combines it with AmpIn's dedication to delivering cost-effective renewable energy. According to the JV's terms, the solar modules will be used both domestically by AmpIn and provided to third-party developers, facilitating growth in both the domestic and export segments of India's renewable energy industry. LINDE WILL PROVIDE INDUSTRIAL GASES TO INDIAN OIL'S PANIPAT REFINERYLinde's branches in India have entered into extended contracts to provide industrial gases to Indian Oil Corporation's Panipat refinery in Northern India. Linde will establish, possess, and operate substantial on-site facilities to deliver hydrogen, nitrogen, and compressed dry air to Indian Oil through a Job Work arrangement. These new on-site facilities will assist in the significant expansion of the Panipat refinery, increasing its capacity from 15 to 25 million metric tons annually.Industrial gases play vital roles in the refining process, such as sulfur removal for clean fuel production, crude oil cracking into various products, and equipment purging and cleaning. The Panipat project will mark Linde's second major hydrogen plant constructed, owned, and operated for Indian Oil. It will also rank among Linde's largest on-site facilities in India, with a combined industrial gas production capacity of 142,200 cubic meters (Nm3) per hour. The plant is scheduled to become operational in 2025.Besides serving Indian Oil, the new on-site complex will fulfill nitrogen demand from various sectors, including chemicals & energy and manufacturing. Moloy Banerjee, President of ASEAN & South Asia at Linde, noted, "We secured this project due to the outstanding efficiency of our technology and Linde's proven track record in providing safe and reliable service to our customers. We are excited to strengthen our partnership with Indian Oil and expand our presence in Northern India". TOP STORIESSNITCH SECURES RS.110 CRORE IN ITS SERIES A FUNDING ROUNDOn Dec 13, the Snitch brand received Rs 110 crore in Series A funding led by SWC Global and IvyCap Ventures. The investment, backed by angel investors, will leverage Snitch's talent, technology and physical marketing strategy, Snitch said in a statement.Snitch opened its first store in Bangalore, and the online platform strengthened its digital presence with over 2 million app downloads. Most of Snitchand's sales come from its website and app, supported by offline activities and partnerships with popular online marketplaces."Snitch has served a vast array of pin codes across India, underlining its wide reach and commitment to quality and innovation," said the company in a press release.Snitch has successfully surpassed a turnover of over 100 crores in the fiscal year 2023, surpassing the anticipated growth of more than 100 percent in the fiscal year 2024. Additionally, Snitch is poised for further expansion with plans to inaugurate over 100 offline stores nationwide within the next 4-5 years.Vikram Gupta, Founder and Managing Partner of IvyCap Ventures, said, "We invested in this exceptional company, recognizing their ability to not just stay on top of the trends but to create them, propelling them to the forefront of their industry.""This round of funding, especially in a challenging financial environment, is a testament to our resilience and the strength of our business model," said Siddharth Dungarwal, founder of Snitch. "We are focused on delivering great value through our online platforms, and with our rapid offline presence, we are laying the foundation for future growth. We are excited to continue setting new standards for retail excellence and customer satisfaction," he added. GOGORO TO LOCALLY MANUFACTURE EVS AND SETUP ROBUST BATTERY NETWORKTaiwan's Gogoro plans to expand its investments in the Indian market, locally manufacturing electric two-wheelers and building a battery transfer network to support these vehicles in the coming years."We have invested $650-700 million in Taiwan so far to set up 12,000 swapping stations, which have in circulation 1.3 million batteries for us and our partners. The Indian market is 20X that. The investments will run into several billion dollars to set up a swapping network pan-India. We are not shy of making investments given the potential in the market here," said Horace Luke, Global CEO Gogoro.Gogoro, which listed on Nasdaq last year, has invested $1.5 billion in Maharashtra and has confirmed plans to build vehicles and set up transit stations in the state within 10 years. The company will work hard to increase its presence in other countries, Luke said, without sharing details.Gogoro, in partnership with Belrise Industries (formerly Badve Engineering), signed a strategic partnership with the Maharashtra government in January 2023 to invest $2.5 billion in developing smart energy infrastructure across the state.Luke said the company will pursue three strategies to accelerate India's transition to electric power. "We will manufacture electric two-wheelers for the B2B segment in India and introduce mobility-as-a-service from Goa later this month. We have also signed an agreement with the MG group to supply electric two-wheelers from here to Nepal. TOP STORIES
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