Solar PV-Focussed Illumine-I Nets INR 17 Cr From Anicut Capital, Others

Design and engineering startup Illumine-I (Illumine Industries Private Limited) has raised INR 17 Cr (around $2.05 Mn) in a Series A funding round led by Anicut Capital.

The startup plans to use the fresh funds to scale up its operations and expand into newer markets.

Illumine-I was set up in 2015 by former SolarCity and Sunrun employees Nithish Sairam and Sudarsan Krishnan to provide structural and electrical engineering expertise for power plants, energy storage systems and distribution components. It focuses on residential, commercial, and utility-scale solar PV (photovoltaics) and energy storage systems.

In 2019, the startup expanded into construction engineering, offering AS MEPF Modeling, Scan to BIM, City Modeling, VR-AR-MR and Walkthrough animation support.

“We’re thrilled to have the backing of Anicut Capital as we enter our next stage of growth. They resonate with our commitment of developing high-value community assets. In the next 12 months, our goal is to introduce tech-based solutions, which would directly translate into reduced risk, reduced cost and improved quality of assets for our customers,”  Illumine-I’s founder and CEO Nithish Sairam said.

On the other hand, the startup’s investor Anicut marks its first investment after securing a commitment of over INR 30 Cr from HDFC AMC’s Fund of Fund in October last year. A month earlier, it secured an investment of INR 50 Cr from the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) for its equity fund.

Anicut currently manages three debt funds (GAF-1, GAF-2 and GAF-4), a seed fund (GAAF), and an early growth equity fund (GAF-3), with a cumulative assets under management (AUM) of INR 3,000 Cr. 

It holds startup brands like Wow! Momo, Axiscades, Kaynes, Bira, Sugar Cosmetics, Earth Rhythm, Wingreens, Blue Tokai, Sharechat, Mcaffeine, Milky Mist, XYXX, Curatio Healthcare and Agnikul, among others, in its portfolio.

“Illumine-i is at the intersection of a fast-growing global market and India’s talent pool to deliver for such a market. Nithish and Sudarsan have built a very strong and scalable business in the renewable energy market. We look forward to supporting them as they expand into new geographies, new products and continue improving the end-to-end journey for customers,”  Anicut Capital’s VP Adithya Bharadwaj said. 

With a government focus on it, the potential of solar energy in India has magnified over the years.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) has predicted that in India solar energy is set to provide for 70% of the country’s power needs by at least 2040.

In 2020, the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) launched the “Industry and Investors’ Facilitation Centre” to address the issues faced by investors and boost investment in clean energy.

Recently, cleantech-focused non banking financial company (NBFC) Metafin has raised $5 Mn (INR 37.5 Cr) in a round from Prime Venture Partners and Varanium Capital.