India's Reliance Power announced it will legally challenge a three-year ban imposed by the Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI), which prevents the company from participating in renewable energy tenders. SECI, a state-owned agency, stated the ban was issued after discovering that a bank guarantee provided by Reliance Power for a bid submission was falsified.
Reliance Power, led by Anil Ambani, described the situation as a case of fraud, asserting that it and its subsidiaries had acted in good faith and were the victims of a conspiracy involving forgery. The company has filed a complaint with the Delhi Police's economic offense wing against the unnamed third party responsible for arranging the guarantee.
The ban complicates Reliance Power's efforts to diversify from coal power into renewable energy, aligning with India's ambitious target of achieving 500 GW of renewable capacity by 2030 as part of its 2070 net-zero goals. Currently, the nation's installed renewable capacity stands at approximately 154 GW.
In an additional setback for Ambani, India's markets regulator barred him from the securities market for five years in August, levying a fine of around $3 million on allegations of fund mismanagement.
