Hyundai To Invest 38 Cr In Two Renewable Energy Plants In Tamil Nadu

Korean carmaker, Hyundai Motor is setting up two renewable energy plants in Tamil Nadu. HMIL signed a Power Purchase and Shareholder Agreement with Fourth Partner Energy Limited (FPEL). This strategic partnership aims to enhance HMIL’s renewable energy portfolio and transition to 100 per cent renewable electricity across its manufacturing operations by 2025. 

HMIL currently fulfils 63 per cent of its energy requirements using renewable sources (as on June 2024), and aims to reach the 100 per cent mark ahead of most automakers in the country. 

The agreements were signed by Gopalakrishnan Chathapuram Sivaramakrishnan, Whole-time Director & Chief Manufacturing Officer, HMIL, and Karan Chadha, National Head, Business Development - Fourth Partner Energy Limited (FPEL), at HMIL’s Chennai Manufacturing Plant in Tamil Nadu.

Commenting on HMIL’s RE100 goals, Gopalakrishnan Chathapuram Sivaramakrishnan, Whole-time Director & Chief Manufacturing Officer, HMIL, said, “Our collaboration with FPEL will help us achieve the RE100 benchmark by 2025. By harnessing the potential of wind and solar power, we are not only reducing our carbon footprint, but also living true to our global vision of ‘Progress for Humanity’.”

As part of this partnership, HMIL will invest INR 38 crores towards setting up these renewable energy plants in Tamil Nadu. These facilities will operate under a Group Captive Mode with a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) formed for Engineering, Procurement, Construction, Operations and Maintenance. HMIL will hold 26 per cent and FPEL will hold 74 per cent equity stake in the project. This long-term agreement will ensure a 25-year supply of renewable energy to HMIL.

Vivek Subramanian, Co-Founder & Executive Director at Fourth Partner Energy highlighted the significance of this strategic partnership by emphasizing, “This next phase of our partnership with Hyundai Motor India Limited is testament to FPEL’s integrated capabilities and execution expertise across solar, wind and battery storage solutions. It also demonstrates the vital role corporates play in building and ensuring a sustainable future. Through this agreement, we will be supplying HMIL with over 25 crore units of clean energy every year, which will help the company mitigate CO2 emissions by 2 lakh tons annually.”

HMIL has further adopted large-scale innovative practices in energy management like 100 per cent transition from conventional to LED lighting in the plant as early as 2017 and at all its offices and dealerships, thermo-ceramic coating on furnaces and ovens to reduce fuel consumption, steam elimination through waste heat recovery in paint shops, relocation of boilers to reduce transmission loss, installation of turbo chillers in paint shops, to name a few. HMIL has also installed a 10 MW rooftop solar plant at its manufacturing facility at Chennai. Since October 2022, the company has been strategically purchasing green power from Indian Energy Exchange (IEX) to increase its renewable energy portfolio.