Morgan Stanley, MUFG start $1 bn Vena India sale process

GIP to fully exit Vena Energy India as global capital flows into India’s clean energy market

- Utpal Bhaskar

Morgan Stanley and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) have begun the sale process for Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP)-owned Vena Global Group Pte Ltd’s Indian renewable energy platform, Vena Energy India, in a deal having an enterprise value of around $1 billion, according to two people familiar with the development.

The deal comes amid a steady flow of global capital into India’s renewable energy market.

The sale marks Global Infrastructure Partners’ full exit from its bet on Vena Energy. The sale process was formally launched this month. GIP itself was acquired by BlackRock Inc. in October last year. Vena Energy India operates 957 megawatts (MW) of renewable power assets, with another 59 MW under construction.

GIP, along with CIC Capital Corp. (CIC Capital) and Public Sector Pension Investment Board (PSP Investments), had acquired Singapore-based renewable energy developer Equis Energy for $5 billion in October 2017. The acquisition included $1.3 billion in liabilities and Equis’s Indian portfolio, which comprised green energy platforms Energon and Energon Soleq.

The assets were later rebranded as Vena Energy and structured as a corporate platform in Singapore.