TOTAL BUYS STAKE IN ADANI

Total SE agreed a US$2.5 billion deal for a stake in India’s Adani Green Energy Ltd.

Total SE has agreed to a $2.5 billion deal that includes a minority stake in India’s renewables giant Adani Green Energy Ltd as it expands its efforts to diversify beyond oil.

“Total will acquire 20% of Adani Green, take a board seat, and add a 50% stake in a portfolio of operating solar assets with capacity to transmit 2.35 gigawatts of power to consumers,’’ the company said in a statement in Paris yesterday.

That confirmed an earlier Bloomberg News report that Total and Adani Green were in advanced talks on a deal.

“India is the right place to put into action our energy transition strategy based on two pillars: renewables and natural gas,” Total CEO Patrick Pouyanne said in the statement.

The deal is the third in a week for Total in the renewables area, following the acquisition of a French biogas producer and of a stake in a large US solar portfolio.

The oil and gas giant and its European peers are increasingly focusing on clean power and renewable fuels amid mounting pressure from investors, governments and consumers to reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Total, which invested $8 billion from 2016 to 2020 in battery manufacturing, power utilities, solar and wind projects, intends to increase spending on electricity and clean energy to become one of the top five renewable companies by the end of the decade.

The producer, which had close to seven gigawatts of gross renewable power capacity at the end of last year, is targeting 35 gigawatts by 2025. Adani Green is targeting 25 gigawatts of renewable capacity by the same year.

Adani Green’s billionaire chairman Gautam Adani last year signaled there was room for founders to dilute their stake in the company and flagged global energy producers, including Total, were interested in investing as they expand their renewable portfolios.

Adani is the latest Indian tycoon to raise money by selling a piece of his energy-to-ports empire to an overseas partner, as rising consumption of electricity to fuels and mobile data makes the country an attractive destination for some investors.

“The deal builds on previous pacts between Total and Adani Group, including a 2018 investment in gas distribution, liquefied natural gas terminals and gas marketing,’’ the French firm said in its statement.