Essar Group Funnels Capital into Low-Carbon Projects in Saudi Arabia
As the company transitions into clean energy investments, India's Essar Group plans to invest billions of dollars in low-carbon projects in Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom, and India. According to Prashant Ruia, director of Essar Capital, which manages the group's investment portfolio, the conglomerate controlled by billionaire brothers Shashi and Ravi Ruia expects to receive final approvals by June to begin investing about $4 billion to build a low-carbon steel plant capable of producing 4 million tons per year in Ras Al-Khair, Saudi Arabia.
"Once we get all the approvals, we have set a three-year timeline to build the project," Ruia said during an interview at a Riyadh investment conference. "We are constructing this plant to meet the surge in domestic demand for steel.
Essar, which became debt-free last year after selling some infrastructure assets, also plans to invest $3.6 billion over the next five years in a variety of low-carbon energy projects. These include a $2.4 billion project in the United Kingdom to decarbonize its oil refinery and a $1.2 billion green ammonia plant in India that will supply the United Kingdom and other international destinations in about three and a half years.
"We have a demand for green ammonia and biofuels in the UK and in Europe, so we want to use India as a supply chain to export green fuels and green ammonia to European markets and to the UK," said the company's CEO.
“The moment we start investing in these low-carbon technologies, the cost of doing this will also come down,” he said. “Compare the cost of producing renewable power 10 years ago and the cost today and you will see it is down by a 10th, it’s now lower than the cost of making power from coal or gas.”