By Kari Williamson

GE will invest US$50 million supporting 500 MW of Greenko’s planned development of 1 GW of wind projects in India. Greenko has committed US$65m for the venture, Greenko Wind Project Private Ltd.

“This investment expands GE’s presence in one of the world’s fastest growing power markets with a local, proven renewable energy developer,” says Raghuveer Kurada, Managing Director and Leader of India at GE Energy Financial Services.

Greenko is currently developing a pipeline of wind projects in the Indian states of Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Rajasthan, which will be owned by the venture, an Indian holding company and the Greenko subsidiary specifically set up to develop wind projects.

The first project is the 65 MW Ratnagiri wind farm in Maharashtra, which is planned for completion in December using GE’s 1.6 MW wind turbines. The wind turbines will be assembled at GE’s facility in Pune, India.

“Wind power is an increasingly important part of the Indian energy market, and through our partnership with GE, a global energy leader, we are well positioned to play an important role in helping to meet the country’s energy needs with clean power using advanced technology,” adds Anil Kumar Chalamalasetty, CEO and Managing Director of Greenko.

Greenko estimates that with an average growth rate of 30 percent, wind energy is the fastest growing clean energy source in India.

The Indian Government has set a renewable energy target of 15% by 2020.