Hindalco enters into commercial arrangement with Greenko Group to co-produce round-the-clock carbon-free energy for its Odisha smelter

• Hindalco and Greenko will work together to develop 375-400 MW of solar and wind power capacity 
• Ensure 100 MW round-the-clock carbon free power with a combination of solar, wind and hydro pump storage
• Carbon emissions expected to reduce by 680,000 tonnes per annum
• Up to 350 MW of contracted capacity shall be explored going forward
   

Hindalco Industries Limited, Aditya Birla Group’s metals flagship, and Greenko Energies Private Limited, India’s leading energy transition company, have entered into a commercial arrangement to set up a renewable energy (RE) project for supply of 100 MW round-the-clock carbon free power. The arrangement covers the development of 375-400 MW of solar and wind capacity. The RE project will be set up as a captive generation facility under a 25-year offtake arrangement and will supply power to Hindalco’s Aditya Aluminium smelter in Odisha, enabling reduction of CO2 emissions by 680,000 tonnes annually.  

Further discussions between the parties to execute a power purchase agreement along with the other supplementary agreements is expected to be completed soon.

Aluminium smelting requires reliable and continuous power. The project will be one of the world’s first for the aluminium sector with very high (+85 per cent) reliability from solar and wind power without dependence on grid electricity. Hindalco will also be the first aluminium company in India to use such RTC (round the clock) carbon free power for smelting.

Greenko will design, construct, partly own and operate the solar and wind facilities. Greenko will also make available appropriate storage capacity from its hydro pump storage project in Pinnapuram, Andhra Pradesh to ensure continuous power supply.

The RE project takes forward Hindalco’s vision of responsible and sustainable manufacturing. Over the past few years, Hindalco has already invested in over 100 MW of solar and wind power. The RE project adds 100 MW (RTC) of captive power and enhancement of the same to up to 350 MW of round-the-clock carbon-free energy shall be explored in the future. The renewable energy initiative is aligned with Hindalco’s commitment to become net carbon neutral by 2050.

Commenting on the arrangement, Mr. Satish Pai, Managing Director, Hindalco, said, “We have made climate action integral to our business and our expansion plans have been shaped by our ESG focus. The agreement with Greenko is a significant step towards reducing our carbon footprint and cementing our status as the world’s most sustainable aluminium company. We are guided by our long-term commitment of becoming net carbon-neutral by 2050 and we are happy to partner with Greenko in this audacious journey.”

Commenting on the partnership, Mr. Anil Kumar Chalamalasetty, CEO and Managing Director at Greenko, said, “We are excited to be partnering with Hindalco to support its journey towards carbon neutrality. At Greenko, we firmly believe that clean energy sources backed with competitive and proven storage technologies like hydro pump storage project offers a competitive, reliable and sustainable alternative to consumers to support their decarbonisation journey. For instance, in this case, the RE project along with Greenko’s PSP will ensure firm and predictable supply even at individual time block level without any banking support from the grid, unprecedented for RE project globally, thereby committing very high reliability to Hindalco. We look forward to taking this partnership further ahead and contribute to Hindalco’s long term commitment of becoming a net carbon-neutral company by 2050.”