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Asia’s Richest Man Boosts Green Energy Push With Two More Deals

The announcements come after Ambani pledged to invest $10 billion in alternative energy over three years.

Asia’s Richest Man Boosts Green Energy Push With Two More Deals
Mukesh Ambani, chairman of Reliance Industries, in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 29, 2009. (Photographer: Adam Berry/Bloomberg)

Reliance Industries Ltd. will buy a German maker of photovoltaic solar wafers and signed a deal with a Danish company to manufacture hydrogen electrolyzers in India, as Mukesh Ambani’s oil-to retail conglomerate pivots to green energy.

Reliance New Energy Solar Ltd. agreed to acquire NexWafe GmbH for 25 million euros ($28.8 million), the Indian group told the exchanges late Tuesday. It will also license Stiesdal A/S’s technology for the hydrolyzers, it said in a separate statement. 

The announcements are part of a string of deals Asia’s richest man has announced in recent days as he pledges to invest $10 billion in alternative energy over three years, putting him squarely in competition with Gautam Adani’s Adani Group, which is planning to pour $20 billion over 10 years into renewable energy. Two days ago, Ambani’s conglomerate said it bought solar panel maker REC Solar Holdings AS from China National Bluestar Group Co. and signed a pact to acquire 40% of Sterling & Wilson Solar Ltd. 

The NexWafe transaction is proposed to be completed by end-October. Reliance will also use NexWafe technology to build large-scale wafer factories in India.

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