Reliance Industries scraps planned merger of new energy unit with itself

Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) has decided to withdraw the scheme to merge subsidiary Reliance New Energy Ltd (RNEL) with itself as it feels that the new, renewable energy business should be undertaken by the subsidiary and not by the company, it said in a stock exchange filing on Saturday.

RIL said that the decision was taken based on a review of the new energy, renewable energy business and investment structure. "It was decided that the new energy / renewable energy business should be undertaken through RNEL and the Scheme be withdrawn,” it said in an exchange filing.

The scheme of amalgamation is presently pending with the National Company Law Tribunal, Mumbai Bench
for approval.

In May 2022, the company said that Reliance New Energy would be amalgamated as the renewable energy initiatives would be undertaken by RIL directly.

RIL chairman Mukesh Ambani had in 2021 charted a massive investment of Rs 75,000 crore in green energy over three years. Of this, Rs 60,000 crore would be spent on setting up four giga factories at Jamnagar to make solar photovoltaic cells, green hydrogen, electrolysers, batteries, and fuel cells. Another Rs 15,000 crore is to be spent on developing the value chain, and partnerships.

In the annual report for FY22, Ambani said that the new energy business had the potential to overtake other businesses of the group in the next 5-7 years.

On Friday, in the Q4 results announcement, Mukesh Ambani said, "Implementation of our New Energy giga factories at Jamnagar is making significant progress. This puts us on track to achieve our goals of transitioning to cleaner energy and enabling sustainable growth. I believe Reliance’s significant investments and strategic partnerships in the renewable energy vertical will help transform the energy landscape of India and the world, in the coming years.”