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MIDAS SHARE TIPS: India's Mytrah Energy wind farms are well placed to turn steady profit
By JOANNE HART
PUBLISHED: 22:49, 3 November 2012 | UPDATED: 22:49, 3 November 2012
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Mytrah Energy listed on the Alternative Investment Market on October 12, 2010 at 115p. At the time it had no assets. Today it is the second largest independent wind power company in India, with contracts in place to sell electricity for the next 20 years.
Wind turbines may be controversial in Britain but India is sufficiently large that farms can be built without seriously damaging the beauty of the countryside.
Mytrah is already making money and profits are expected to soar over the next few years. Yet the shares have fallen to 74½p. At this price they are a bargain.
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Mytrah was founded by two successful entrepreneurs, Ravi Kailas and Alastair Cade. Kailas has already built and sold two companies in India. Cade co-founded London stockbroker Daniel Stewart.
A couple of years ago, the pair realised that the Indian renewable energy market presented a real growth opportunity. There was huge demand for energy, supply was limited and wind farms were far cheaper to build than in other parts of the world.
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In the months before listing, Mytrah secured a contract with India’s leading wind turbine maker and operator, Suzlon, which guaranteed to deliver 1,000 megawatts of electricity at a fixed price by 2017.
At the time, India’s renewable energy market was in an unusual position. The government had been offering generous tax concessions to investors in the sector so by 2010, there were about 900 companies and individuals with stakes in wind farms and other renewable energy projects.
Kailas and Cade predicted that the tax break would not last for ever, so companies such as Suzlon would be looking for alternative investors. This proved correct.
Suzlon had become accustomed to building wind farms in the expectation of selling small stakes to wealthy individuals. Mytrah was offering to buy entire projects. The deal benefits both parties. Suzlon has more certainty about its future now the tax concession has been withdrawn.
Mytrah has contracted to purchase farms on a so-called ‘turnkey’ basis by which it does not pay for the turbines until they are up and running. This is especially important in India, where building projects have a habit of taking longer than expected.
So far, there have been only minor delays, but any future setback