Founded in 2003 by Manoj Upadhyay, ACME Cleantech Solutions Private Limited, or simply ACME Group, started as ACME Tele Power Limited, providing energy management solutions for mobile cell towers. The company first ventured into the solar thermal space in 2008 and set up a project based on tower technology. It established its first solar photovoltaic project in 2011 in the state of Gujarat and has grown by leaps and bounds in this space since. By 2015, ACME Group had established a solar portfolio of 1.5 GW and has continued on this growth path till today. Currently, the company has its project base in more than 12 Indian states and has more than 5 GWp of solar projects already built and under operations, with a further 10 GW+ projects under construction. It is focusing on building a strong project pipeline and is amassing various new projects through auctions.
Further, it is now focusing on expanding its operations overseas as well and already has various projects and collaborations underway. ACME Group is now also not just focusing on solar power but has diversified into other renewable energy sources. It was one of the initial movers in the green hydrogen space with its project in Bikaner and has announced a series of projects in this space. It has also finally forayed into the wind power segment and signed its first wind power purchase agreement (PPA) with Gujarat Urja Vikas Nigam Limited (GUVNL) for a 50 MW grid-connected project in December 2022. Further, ACME Group is now going to offer competitive round-the-clock (RTC) renewable energy supply solutions to its various clients which is going to be made possible with the help of its upcoming pumped storage projects – the 600 MW off-stream closed loop Brahmani project in Rajasthan and two off-stream closed-loop projects in Prayagraj and Meerganj in Uttar Pradesh.
Recent auction wins
ACME Group is planning rapid capacity additions as evident from its series of wins in many recent auctions both at the central and state level. To its credit, the company has a history of emerging as a winning bidder in various auctions held in India ever since the introduction of competitive bidding in the solar power segment. Its Rs 2.44 per kWh bid for 200 MW of capacity in Solar Energy Corporation of India’s (SECI’s) 2017 auction for Bhadla Solar Park Phase – III auction was the lowest ever tariff witnessed in the solar power space in India. Interestingly, this six year old historic bid continues to be lower than the tariffs witnessed even in recent months.
The year 2023 started off on a good note for ACME Group and it won 100 MW of wind power capacity in January 2023 in GUVNL’s auction to supply power from 300 MW of grid-connected wind projects (Phase-IV) by quoting Rs 3.01 per kWh. Then in April 2023, it emerged as one of the winners of SECI’s 1,200 MW solar-wind hybrid auction Tranche V with energy storage and assured peak power supply across India winning 380 MW of capacity at Rs 4.73 per kWh. In August 2023, the company secured 500 MW at a tariff of Rs 6.69 per kWh in Rajasthan Urja Vikas Nigam Limited’s (RUVNL) 1,200 MW auction for solar with energy storage.
ACME Group went on to win three other auctions before the end of the year. It won 250 MW at a tariff of Rs 4.38 per kWh in SJVN Limited’s auction to supply 1.5 GW of power from ISTS-connected renewable energy with energy storage in November 2023. Then, it won 300 MW at Rs 2.53 per kWh in December 2023 in PFC Consulting Limited’s auction to develop 1,250 MW of solar power projects. In the same month, it won 300 MW of solar-wind hybrid capacity at Rs 3.36 per kWh in NTPC Limited’s 1,500 MW auction. It is quite evident from these recent auction wins that while the company may have been a solar power player originally, it has clearly set its sights on becoming a major RTC player with a large portfolio of projects in this space.
Plans in green hydrogen space
ACME Group set up an integrated pilot project for green hydrogen and green ammonia plant at Bikaner in Rajasthan in 2021. The project has a 5 MWp capacity and is scalable to 10 MWp and uses solar power for green hydrogen production. The company is using the learnings from this project for developments elsewhere and has recently got a boost in this space by emerging as one of the winners of SECI’s auction to develop 450,000 metric tonnes per annum generation facilities for green hydrogen. ACME has won 90,000 metric tonnes capacity at an average incentive of Rs 30 per kg.
The company has various projects and partnerships lined up in India and overseas in the green hydrogen space. It has already signed an MoU with the Karnataka government to invest Rs 520 billion in setting up a green hydrogen and green ammonia plant in Mangaluru. Similarly, it has announced another green hydrogen and green ammonia project in Tamil Nadu with an investment of Rs 525 billion. The project will comprise 5,000 MW of solar PV plants, 1.5 GW of electrolyser capacity and 1.1 million tonnes of ammonia synthesis loop. The company has also signed a land agreement with Tata Steel Special Economic Zone Limited for 343 acres of land for its green hydrogen and green ammonia project at the Gopalpur Industrial Park in Odisha. Further, it has an MoU with city gas distribution company Indraprastha Gas Limited (IGL) for setting up hydrogen generation plants as well as electrolysers to blend green hydrogen in IGL’s existing pipeline networks.
ACME Group is setting up a large-scale green ammonia facility in Oman in the Duqm Special Economic Zone. The first phase of the facility is expected to produce 100,000 tonnes of green ammonia annually. This will be expanded to 1.2 million tonnes per annum produced by about 3.5 GW of electrolyser capacity, which will be powered by 5.5 GWp of solar PV plants. The company has an agreement in place with Norway-based Scatec ASA to invest in its Oman project with a 50-50 joint venture to design, develop, build and operate this large-scale green ammonia facility.
This facility will cater to green hydrogen demand from hubs in Europe and Asia once it becomes operational. In addition, ACME Group has an agreement with IHI Corporation that allows the latter to participate as an investor in, or offtake, one or more projects of ACME in Oman, India, the US, or Egypt. It has signed another MoU with Japan-based NYK Line for exploring the possibility of NYK becoming a strategic shipping partner for ACME’s green ammonia projects. ACME plans to become a leading global green hydrogen player and producing 10 million tonnes per year of green ammonia and hydrogen. The company has already set the wheels in motion to not just set up production units but also ensure their transport and offtake.
Outlook
The Indian renewable energy market has evolved significantly in the last 15 years since ACME Group ventured into this space. The company has managed to stay ahead in the game, amassing a huge portfolio of solar projects across India, and continuing to win projects in various auctions at highly competitive prices.
While many other large development firms of its size and scale decided to diversify quite early on, ACME has recently jumped on the diversification bandwagon. However, the company has been quite steadfast in its strategy to expand and now has a strong pipeline of wind, hybrids, pumped storage, and green hydrogen projects along with solar power.
To its credit, ACME Group realised the potential of green hydrogen much before its competitors and already has a project in Bikaner with others coming in various parts of the country. The Oman project will further help the company to establish itself in the highly attractive Middle East green hydrogen market with tremendous opportunities for export.
Net, net, the company has a bright outlook as it focuses on increasing its portfolio across different renewable energy segments and various locations in India as well as abroad.
By Khushboo Goyal
