FILE PHOTO: The logo of the Adani Group is seen on the facade of its Corporate House on the outskirts of Ahmedabad, India, November 22, 2024. REUTERS/Amit Dave/File Photo
COLOMBO: India’s Adani Group’s power purchase deal with the Sri Lankan government is intact, the company says, after the AFP news agency reported it had been revoked, citing a government official and a document.
Sri Lanka has been reviewing the group’s local projects after US authorities in November accused billionaire founder Gautam Adani and other executives of being part of a scheme to pay bribes to secure Indian power supply contracts.
Adani has denied the allegations.
It also denied the AFP report its 20-year deal power purchase agreement (PPA) signed in May 2024 had been revoked.
“Reports that Adani’s 484MW wind power projects in Mannar and Pooneryn have been cancelled are false and misleading. We categorically state that the PPA has not been revoked,” Adani’s spokesperson said in a statement last Friday.
Adani said the Sri Lankan Cabinet’s decision earlier this month to re-evaluate the tariff approved in May was a “standard review process” with a new government and that the group remains committed to investing US$1bil in Sri Lanka’s green-energy sector.
Sri Lanka’s Power and Energy Ministry declined to comment.
Two ministry sources told Reuters, on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to speak publicly, they were still reviewing the project and the power purchase deal had not been revoked.
Under the deal with Sri Lanka, Adani Green Energy would build two wind power stations in the South Asian island nation’s northern province, with a total investment of US$442mil. The company would be paid 8.26 US cents per kWh.
Cash-strapped Sri Lanka, which has suffered from power blackouts and fuel shortages, has been trying to speed up green power generation to hedge against surges in imported fuel costs.
The US allegations raised concerns among some partners and investors of the group, with at least one Indian state reviewing its power deal with Adani and TotalEnergies halting further investments in the conglomerate.
Overseas, Kenya has scrapped more than US$2.5bil in deals with the Adani Group, including contracts to develop an airport and build power transmission lines, following the US indictment.
The Adani Group is also involved in building a US$700mil terminal project at Sri Lanka’s largest port in Colombo. Adani Green Energy shares closed 1.8% lower in Mumbai, while the group’s flagship unit Adani Enterprises ended nearly 3% lower in a weak broader market. — Reuters
