New Venture, Led by Indian Firm, to Invest up to $1.5B in Solar in Colorado

WASHINGTON — A new venture backed by Vikram Solar Ltd., one of the largest solar module manufacturers in India, is set to invest up to $1.5 billion in new manufacturing facilities in Colorado and an as-yet undisclosed state in the southern U.S.

The announcement of the investment, made possible by incentives in President Joe Biden’s landmark climate change law, the Inflation Reduction Act, came during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the White House.

The newly formed company, called VSK Energy LLC, is a joint venture between Vikram Solar and two U.S.-based firms, Phalanx Impact Partners, a sustainability focused private equity firm, and Das & Co, an investment and development company with solar holdings in both the United States and India.

The partnership aims to couple India’s extensive knowledge and experience in the solar sector with the Biden administration’s push to build a clean energy manufacturing sector here that can go toe-to-toe with China.

During a joint press conference with Modi in the East Room of the White House on Thursday, Biden said the partnership between the U.S. and India is “among the most consequential in the world” and said that it is “stronger, closer and more dynamic than any time in history.”

VSK Energy’s first facility, which will be located in Brighton, Colorado, is expected to begin producing solar modules next year, while the plan is for the second facility to start producing solar cells, wafers and ingots — the raw materials for solar panels — in 2025.

“Vikram Solar is proud to be part of this monumental endeavor with the rest of the VSK team,” said Gyanesh Chaudhary, founder, chairman and managing director of Vikram Solar, in a written statement. 

“With our 17 years of experience in solar manufacturing, combined with the VSK team’s commitment to a clean energy future, we look forward to driving the solar industry forward and setting a new benchmark for innovation and efficiency in solar manufacturing in the United States,” Chaudhary said.

Sriram Das, a managing director at Das & Co and chairman of the joint venture, agreed, adding in a written statement, “It’s a great thing for us to be bringing an Indian company to the table here.

“You’ve seen a number of Indian companies get into the manufacturing space and do quite well, and Vikram is the best of them,” he said.

Das also went on to applaud the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act last year, which he referred to as “a landmark moment for the clean energy future of the United States.

“The Biden administration and Congress have called for immediate action and through our partnership in VSK, we are taking a decisive step towards achieving solar technology self-sufficiency, fortifying America’s energy security and propelling large-scale solar deployment,” he said.

The first phase of the investment consists of a $250 million investment to develop an American solar photovoltaic module manufacturing facility in a recently completed building in Brighton, which is owned by Mortenson Properties and Hyde Development. 

The new factory is expected to create over 900 direct jobs with an average salary of more than $70,000 and over 200 construction jobs. VSK Energy expects the facility to commence operations in 2024 with an initial capacity of 2 GW in solar PV modules and planned expansion of up to 4 GW.

“Colorado is one of the top states in the country for solar production so this expansion in Brighton will help build upon our plans to achieve 100% renewable energy by 2040, create new good-paying jobs for Coloradans and contribute to our state’s thriving economy,” said Colorado’s Democratic Gov. Jared Polis.

According to Eve Lieberman, executive director of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade, “cleantech,” of which renewable energy is a major part, already contributes about $4.6 billion per year to the state’s economy and employs over $62,000 of its residents.

“By establishing a new solar manufacturing facility in Brighton, VSK will grow this important employment sector and help further Colorado’s commitment to grow clean energy technologies,” Lieberman said.

The planned second phase of investment would complete VSK’s vertical integration of the solar manufacturing process with the development of a factory in a southern U.S. state with a planned annual capacity of 4 GW. 

VSK Energy intends to invest up to $1.25 billion in this new factory which is expected to commence operations in 2025 following finalization of available federal, state, regional and local incentives for the project. The new facility is expected to create over 1,500 direct jobs and over 1,000 construction jobs.

“This investment is more than a financial commitment; it’s a testament to our belief in the transformative power of sustainable technologies and the solar industry,” said Alex Hung, partner and co-founder of Phalanx Impact Partners. “With this VSK project, we are not only helping to shape the clean energy future of the United States but also positively influencing the communities where these facilities will operate.”

Mortenson, a solar engineering, procurement, construction and commercial contracting firm with over 70 years of experience building large, complex facilities, will oversee the engineering and construction of both phases of VSK Energy’s planned investment. 

The company has over 13 years of solar energy construction experience and has installed solar projects across 17 states in the United States, providing more than 9 GWs of generation. 

During the White House news conference Thursday, Biden said the state visit by Modi demonstrates “once more how India and the United States are collaborating on nearly every human endeavor and delivering progress across the board, including accelerating the global clean energy transition and tackling the climate crisis.”

Later, in response to a reporter’s question, Biden repeated what he’s said in the past about climate change being “the existential threat to humanity.”

“It’s the most serious problem we face as human beings,” he said, adding, “We’ve made enormous progress here in the United States on dealing with this issue.

“Number one, by insisting that we move every one of our industries into a position where they can take advantage of cheaper and more extensive and more available renewable energy, whether it’s solar or wind or hydrogen and green hydrogen,” the president said.

“In addition to that, I made a commitment that we are going to make sure that by 2030, 30% of all our land and sea and oceans are in conservation and cannot be developed. … And that’s going to have an add-on effect — as a result of those conservation efforts, we’ll be naturally absorbing more carbon from the air than ever before.”

Modi’s visit to the White House continued on Friday morning with a meeting with senior officials and CEOs from a number of U.S. and Indian companies, including Google, Microsoft, General Catalyst, Tulco, Planet Labs, Mahindra Group, Reliance Industries, Zerodha & True Beacon, 3rdiTech, FMC Corporation, Flex and OpenAI.

The discussion was expected to center on innovation, investment and manufacturing in a variety of technology sectors, including AI, semiconductors and space exploration.

During remarks relayed through a translator, Modi said the environment and the well-being of the climate are “extremely important in our cultural traditions.”

“For us, the environment is an article of faith,” he said. 

Modi said of all the G20 countries, India is the only one to date that has fulfilled all of the promises it made under the Paris Accord to address climate change, and that it has since set itself a target to get 500 GW of its power from renewable sources.

In addition, the prime minister said, India plans to make its extensive railway system “net zero” by 2030.

“And you must understand the scale of Indian railways,” Modi said. “When we talk about Indian railways, we’re talking about a system that, every day, transports the equivalent of the entire population of Australia.

“We are also working in the area of green hydrogen. We want India to be a green hydrogen hub, and we are working towards this,” the prime minister said.

He also noted with pride that India launched the International Solar Alliance, which now has some 123 signatory countries.

“We helped them in the area of solar energy,” he said of the other member nations. “It’s part of our promise to not only fulfill our responsibilities when it comes to climate change, but we will also help you to do the same.”

Dan can be reached at [email protected] and at https://twitter.com/DanMcCue