News

Specialist energy lawyer Mukund Puranik, former counsel with Reliance India, and Hugh Fraser, former Head of Legal at Wood Group, have announced the launch of Puranik & Fraser International, a joint venture legal and consulting services firm to focus on offshore wind opportunities in Southern Asia and other energy transition opportunities in the region. The JV will benefit from the team resources and network of Hugh Fraser International.

A key theme is to build on the expertise gained from the ScotWind offshore wind programme in the UK and the drive towards floating offshore wind, tidal and green hydrogen technologies.

The International Energy Agency (IEA)’s special report on India in 2021 and the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) 2021 Report both highlighted the scale of the challenges and opportunities, updated at WindEurope in Hamburg in September: India has 7,600 km of coastline and has set a target of 30 GW of offshore wind by 2030, with Gujarat and Tamil Nadu dominating.

The Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) has issued a draft Tender Document for Offshore Wind sea-bed leasing rights off the coast of Tamil Nadu. The consultation period is due to end on 30 November 2022.

The GWEC 2021 Report sets out the opportunities in other Southern Asian territories including Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines.