Adani is going to buy ‘Polaris Smart Metering’!
There is a lot of buzz these days in India’s energy sector regarding smart meters. The government plans to provide smart meters to every household in the country. Amidst this big change, ‘Polaris Smart Metering’, a leading company manufacturing smart electricity and gas meters, is going to be sold. Many big infrastructure giants of the country have geared up to buy this company. Big names like Adani Energy Solutions, Aprava Energy and private equity fund Actis are leading in this race. Negotiations for this deal worth about Rs 1,500 crore have now reached an important stage.
Who are involved in the deal worth ₹1,500 crore
Polaris Smart Metering’s parent company ‘I Squared Capital’ is preparing to exit this business. According to sources, the sale process of the company has progressed well and talks are going on with four-five big shortlisted companies. Adani Energy Solutions, Aprava Energy and Actis have entered this second phase and started their ‘due diligence’ process. It is expected that these companies will submit their final and binding bids by the beginning of August. Market experts believe that the value of the company in this entire deal can be estimated at around Rs 1,500 crore (more than $150 million).
Polaris’ business is expanding
I Squared Capital had invested $100 million in this company in February 2023 itself and purchased a controlling stake through one of its units. The remaining share is with ‘Samunnati Singapore’, which is completely owned by Yash Raj Khaitan. Polaris primarily makes smart meters for homes and factories. The company already has big contracts to install meters in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal. In Uttar Pradesh, this company in collaboration with Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam is working to install 51 lakh smart meters in Lucknow and Ayodhya clusters. At the same time, it has got the contract to install 22 lakh meters in West Bengal also.
What is a smart meter?
Smart meters are actually digital devices that automatically record electricity or gas consumption data and send it to the company. With this, real-time consumption can be monitored and the common man gets rid of errors in electricity bills or estimated billing. The Government of India is pursuing an aggressive target of installing 25 crore prepaid smart meters across the country by the year 2027 under the ‘Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme’. This will help in reducing huge losses in power distribution. About Rs 1.35 lakh crore is to be invested in this entire scheme.
