Apple Pledges ₹100 Crore to Power India’s Green Energy and Startup Revolution

Apple has announced a ₹100 crore investment in India to expand renewable energy and support green startups, partnering with CleanMax and WWF‑India. The initiative will add over 150 MW of clean energy capacity—enough to power 1.5 lakh households annually—and provide catalytic support to six early‑stage enterprises in waste management, regenerative agriculture, and circular economy solutions.

Key Highlights of Apple’s India Green Push

• Investment Size: ₹100 crore (initial phase).
• Renewable Energy Capacity: 150 MW, powering ~150,000 households annually.
• Partners:
  • CleanMax → Renewable energy developer for solar and wind projects.
  • WWF‑India → Recycling and plastic waste recovery initiatives.
  • Acumen → Supporting six early‑stage green startups.
• Focus Areas: Renewable energy, waste management, regenerative agriculture, circular economy, plastic pollution reduction.
• Global Goal: Apple aims to be carbon neutral across its entire footprint by 2030.
• Impact on India’s Clean Energy & Startup Ecosystem
• Boost to Renewable Infrastructure: Large‑scale solar and wind projects will strengthen India’s clean energy adoption, especially across Apple’s supply chain.
• Startup Support: Six early‑stage enterprises will receive grants, mentorship, and strategic guidance to scale sustainable solutions.
• Waste Management Expansion: WWF‑India’s collaboration with Saahas Zero Waste in Goa will now extend to Coimbatore and other regions, improving recycling traceability and reducing plastic leakage.
• Supply Chain Sustainability: Apple’s India partners (Foxconn, Tata Electronics) will benefit from increased renewable energy integration.

Quick Comparison of Apple’s Initiatives in India

Initiative	Partner	Scale/Impact	Focus Area
Renewable Energy Expansion	CleanMax	150 MW capacity, 1.5 lakh households	Solar & wind infrastructure
Green Startup Support	Acumen	6 startups	Waste mgmt, agriculture, circular economy
Plastic Waste Recovery	WWF‑India + Saahas Zero Waste	Expansion from Goa to Coimbatore	Recycling, pollution reduction

Risks & Challenges

• Execution Timeline: Large‑scale renewable projects often face delays due to land acquisition and regulatory approvals.
• Startup Viability: Early‑stage green startups may struggle with scalability and funding beyond Apple’s initial support.
• Supply Chain Integration: Ensuring suppliers adopt renewable energy consistently across India could be complex.

Why This Matters for India

• Strengthens Atmanirbhar Bharat by reducing import dependence in clean energy.
• Aligns with India’s 500 GW non‑fossil fuel target by 2030.
• Encourages green entrepreneurship, creating jobs and innovation in sustainability sectors.

At Apple, our commitment to the environment is also a driving force for innovation — across the company and around the world, said Sarah Chandler, Apple’s vice president of Environment and Supply Chain Innovation. We’re proud to expand our efforts to invest in India’s clean energy economy and protect the country’s precious natural resources

IFC’s First Thai C&I Solar Bet: $45 Mn Investment in CleanMax to Scale Renewable Access

To expand access to reliable energy and make clean power more affordable for industrial businesses, IFC is investing THB 1,476 million (approximately $45 million) in CleanMax Energy (Thailand) Company Limited, a subsidiary of Clean Max Enviro Energy Solutions Private Limited (“CMES” “CleanMax”). Backed by Brookfield, CleanMax is a leading Indian renewable energy and net-zero solution provider for the Commercial and Industrial (C&I) sector.

This marks IFC’s first debt investment in a renewable energy developer in Thailand focused exclusively on the C&I sector. The funding will support the development of 35 megawatt-peak (MWp) greenfield solar capacity, refinance 41 MWp of operating solar projects, and increase the country’s C&I solar capacity.

“CleanMax aims to expand clean and accessible green energy across key sectors by establishing further presence in Thailand”, said Mr. Kuldeep Jain, Managing Director of CleanMax. “Through our partnership with IFC we will strive to build a sizeable portfolio, attract interest from commercial lenders, and seek to collectively contribute to developing renewable energy assets in Thailand.”

“Building on the momentum for commercial and industrial solar in Thailand, IFC’s financing will help CleanMax, a leading Indian private player, expand its operations in line with market demand,” said Riccardo Puliti, Regional Vice President for Asia and the Pacific at IFC. “Aligned with government efforts, this project will enhance competitiveness in the distributed generation segment and expand renewable energy solutions for the country.”

As Thailand moves toward a more diversified energy mix, the industrial sector and its growing power demand continue to drive the adoption of on-site solar solutions that offer lower tariffs than the grid. IFC estimates that the market for C&I solar in Thailand could triple over the next 10 years.

"IFC was one of the first institutional investors in CMES with a more than $10 million equity investment in 2017 alongside Warburg Pincus, a global private equity firm."

This latest investment builds on that partnership, emphasizing IFC’s commitment to scaling energy solutions across emerging markets.

About IFC

IFC — a member of the World Bank Group — is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2024, IFC committed a record $56 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging private sector solutions and mobilizing private capital to create a world free of poverty on a livable planet. For more information, visit www.ifc.org.

About Clean Max Enviro Energy Solutions Pvt. Ltd. (CleanMax)

CleanMax [is one of the leading Indian renewable energy companies in the C&I (Commercial and Industrial) sector,] with 2.2 GW of operating, owned and managed capacity of renewable assets spread across India, Middle East, and South-East Asia as of 31st March 2025, driven by a skilled and professional team. CleanMax is a Brookfield backed company. Focused on being the sustainability & net-zero partner of choice for corporates, CleanMax provides diverse solutions, including rooftop solar projects, solar farms, wind farms and wind-solar hybrid farms to its customers, and has further expanded its portfolio to include renewable energy certificates as well. We serve over 500 distinct corporates as on 31st March 2025. CleanMax’s solutions are aimed to comprehensively help accelerate its customers’ shift to clean energy. Companies across industries such as Data Centres, Textiles, Automotive, Chemicals, FMCG, Pharma, Manufacturing have relied on CleanMax as their Net Zero Solutions provider.

Solar Startup CleanMax Solar Raises $39 Mn from UK Climate Investments

CleanMax Solar, a leading rooftop solar developer, has raised ₹275 core (~ US$39 million) in investment from the United Kingdom (UK) Climate Investments LLP (UKCI), which is a joint venture between the Green Investment Group and the U.K. Government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

The funds will help support CleanMax Solar’s business expansion and development of a nationwide network of solar photovoltaic (PV) farms for corporates.

UKCI’s investment will support CleanMax Solar as it expands its renewable energy portfolio – facilitating renewable energy buying for corporates through the construction of a network of private solar farms across India.

Kuldeep Jain, the founder and managing director of CleanMax Solar said, “Corporates are quickly adopting renewables sourcing at scale to achieve the twin benefits of profit improvement and carbon footprint reduction. This investment, along with the know-how of Macquarie will enable CleanMax to continue being the market leader in B2B solar sector. We are excited with our aim to enhance our portfolio from 500 MW to 2000 MW in the next three years.”

Speaking about their interest in CleanMax Solar, Richard Abel, the managing director of UK Climate Investments, said, “CleanMax Solar is helping businesses in one of the world’s fastest-growing economies rethink how they produce and consume electricity. Our partnership represents an exciting opportunity to help take their platform to the next level – underpinning investment in new renewable generation capacity whilst accelerating India’s transition to a low-carbon future.”

UBS Securities India Private Limited was the sole financial advisor to CleanMax on this transaction.

This is the third time that CleanMax Solar has successfully raised equity financing. In November 2017, CleanMax raised $15 million (~₹964.5 million) investment from the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group. IFC invested in convertible debentures in of the company. This was the first time IFC acquired an equity stake in a distributed-generation firm.

Last year in July, CleanMax Solar had secured equity financing of about $100 million from an affiliate of Warburg Pincus, a global private equity firm focused on growth investing.

Recently, its subsidiary CleanMax IPP received ₹1.58 billion ($22.6 million) in a loan from PTC India Financial Services to refinance earlier loan.

CleanMax Solar emerged as the top rooftop solar installer in 2018 followed by Fourth Partner Energy, whereas Tata Power still has the largest cumulative installations in the solar rooftop segment. These findings were revealed in Mercom’s newly released India Solar Market Leaderboard 2019 report that covers market share and shipment rankings across the Indian solar supply chain in 2018.

The Indian solar market installed 8,263 MW in CY 2018, down 15.5% compared to 9,782 MW in CY 2017 as the safeguard duty, GST issues, and land and transmission issues took a toll on the large-scale installations, according to report by Mercom India Research.

Early this year, an another solar rooftop startup, ZunRoof, had raised an undisclosed sum in the third round of angel funding from angel investors including Ramakant Sharma, Founder of Livspace and Arun Diaz of IntelleGrow along with the lead investors of ZunRoof's previous round.

A month before that, Reliance Industrial Investments and Holdings Limited ('RIIHL'), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries Ltd, announced to acquire Kanoda Energy Systems, an Ahmedabad-based renewable energy services firm that offers services in solar advisory, product design and technology validation. RIIHL is picking up a controlling stake of 88% for ₹ 75 crore (about $10.7 million), in an all-cash deal.

Last year in April, Gurgaon headquartered ReNew Power acquired of Delhi-based solar energy sartup Ostro Energy Private Limited for whopping $1.5 billion, to create the India’s largest clean energy firm by installed capacity.

Last June, Hyderabad-based solar energy solution startup Fourth Partner Energy had raised $70 million in Series B funding from The Rise Fund, a global impact investment fund managed by TPG Growth.

The above news was first reported at Mercomindia.com

CleanMax Solar Raises $100M from Warburg Pincus

CleanMax Solar, India’s largest rooftop solar developer for the corporate sector, today announced that it has secured equity financing of up to $100 million from an affiliate of Warburg Pincus, a global private equity firm focused on growth investing. CleanMax Solar enjoys 24% market share in India’s booming rooftop solar market (Source: Bridge to India 2017 report) and has numerous marquee clients including the Tata group, the Mahindra group, the TVS group, Carlsberg India, Konecranes India, Carl Zeiss India, Manipal Education and Medical Group, SKF India Limited, Mindtree Limited and Alkem Laboratories Limited. CleanMax will use the funds to continue its rapid growth in the rooftop and open access solar power markets in India, while pursuing growth in select international markets (Middle East and South-East Asia), and growing the nascent, yet promising energy storage solutions business.

Kuldeep Jain, Founder and Managing Director of CleanMax Solar commented, “CleanMax was founded with the mission of being the sustainability partner for corporates. Companies are leading the world in terms of sustainability aspirations, and today solar power can provide savings upwards of thirty percent on a customer’s electricity bills with no investment from the customer. Warburg Pincus was a partner of choice for us as they have fabulous track record of partnering entrepreneurs in India over past twenty years.”

“With this investment, we combine our market leadership in the corporate solar sector with the status of being also the best capitalized company in the space. Our India business has grown from 8 MW in 2014-15 to over 100 MW in 2016-17, and is likely to achieve aggregate capacity of up to 250 MW in 2017-18. Warburg Pincus’ investment will enable us to pursue additional growth opportunities beyond India, and provide next generation solutions to our customers through a combination of rooftop solar and energy storage,” Kuldeep added.

Saurabh Agarwal, a Warburg Pincus Managing Director commented, “CleanMax Solar is a leader in the Indian solar rooftop market, providing customers with cost-efficient and environmentally friendly solutions to meet their energy requirements. We believe that CleanMax, is well poised to benefit from the strong growth tailwinds in the sector, and look forward to working with the management team to build a world class enterprise.”

T.V. Mohandas Pai, Chairman, Manipal Global Education Services Pvt. Ltd. said, “The CleanMax Solar team stands out for their growth and performance. For the last 3 years, we have been working with CleanMax as a rooftop solar and sustainability partner for Manipal Education and Medical Group across our Universities and campuses, bringing in-depth knowledge about solar power and innovative solutions to the table. Their execution has been exemplary, quality of service and response is outstanding and pricing very competitive. My best wishes are with the entire CleanMax Solar team for their journey ahead”.

Anish Jhaveri, Founder of Oliphans capital, which was an early investor in CleanMax Solar stated, "I've been very impressed by CleanMax Solar’s mission of being a sustainability partner for corporates. They have an impressive team and client roster. I'm confident this raised funds will help them maintain their market leadership position. The reason for our investment was clarity and conviction on scale of opportunity that solar industry presented. It’s all about execution once you have a good set of entrepreneurs – that’s what produces winners in the space”.