CleanMax FY26: Commissioning-led growth, Data and AI momentum, and a new CTU risk bucket

Clean Max Enviro Energy Solutions Limited ended FY26 with a step-change in scale. Consolidated revenue from operations rose to INR 19,128.73 million in FY26 from INR 14,957.01 million in FY25, while EBITDA increased to INR 12,945.63 million from INR 10,150.72 million. Reported PAT moved up sharply to INR 855.77 million from INR 194.29 million, helped by a larger stabilised operating portfolio and margin improvement.

The operating narrative was equally important. Contracted renewable energy power sales capacity reached 5.7 GW as of March 31, 2026. Of this, 3.1 GW was operational and 2.6 GW was contracted but yet to be executed. The company commissioned 1.4 GW of RE power sales capacity during FY26, expanding operational RE power sales capacity to 3,088 MW (2,442 MWp solar and 646 MW wind). Management emphasised that post-COD ramp-up matters. STU projects can take 3 to 6 months for revenue stabilisation due to technical stabilisation, open access documentation and other approvals.

FY26 financial performance: growth with improving margins

CleanMax reports two segments with very different margin profiles: renewable energy power sales and renewable energy services. Both grew in FY26, and both expanded EBITDA margins.

At a segment level, the presentation shows RE power sales revenue of INR 13,995 million in FY26 (INR 11,072 million in FY25) and RE services revenue of INR 4,973 million in FY26 (INR 3,767 million in FY25). While gross margins in RE power sales were broadly stable at about 92.5%, EBITDA margin improved to 83.5% (from 81.9%), driven by operating leverage in SG&A. In RE services, EBITDA margin rose to 19.6% (from 14.4%).

Management also highlighted a steady decline in borrowing costs, with the weighted average cost of project debt reducing to 8.50% in FY26 from 9.19% in FY25 and 9.47% in FY24.

Scale-up and diversification: more states, more customers, and more contracting structures

FY26 was a commissioning-heavy year across seven states in India, and CleanMax continued to grow its onsite solar footprint across India and overseas. The company states that onsite solar as of March 31, 2026 included 275 MWp in India and 123 MWp overseas (59 MWp UAE, 18 MWp Bahrain, 46 MWp Thailand).

The portfolio is also diversified by contracting strategy. Operating capacity of 3,644 MW as of FY26 is split across STU group captive, STU third-party open access, CTU projects, capex services and onsite solar. On technology, operating capacity is 78% solar and 22% wind, while contracted-under-execution capacity of 2,812 MW is 58% solar and 42% wind.

Customer base metrics show continued breadth. The company reported 588 C&I customers and 1,280 PPAs and contracts as of March 31, 2026. Contract tenors remain long, with weighted average PPA tenor of 23.17 years, and management stated an average lock-in period of about 17.85 years based on its disclosures.

Data and AI: the growth engine within C&I

A core theme in both the presentation and the call was the rising share of Data and AI customers. CleanMax said 42% of contracted capacity was with Data and AI as of March 31, 2026, compared with 14% two years earlier. Management described this as a major growth driver, citing rapid increases in power consumption once AI workloads and AI chips are deployed.

The company also discussed contracting structures used for global technology companies, including environmental attribute and contract-for-difference structures. Management stated that out of 5.7 GW contracted capacity, about 1.6 to 1.7 GW is under contract-for-difference type arrangements, where the power is sold on the exchange and the difference to a fixed contract price is settled separately.

Run-rate EBITDA and the new CTU risk bucket

CleanMax uses run-rate EBITDA to describe the estimated annual EBITDA potential of already commissioned capacity, assuming full-year operation. As of March 31, 2026, the presentation shows run-rate EBITDA of INR 1,870 crore for RE power sales. Management clarified on the call that this run-rate number is not adjusted for curtailment.

This matters because FY26 also included a new element in the portfolio: the first CTU-connected project in Rajasthan (525 MWp). The presentation notes that grid backdowns are expected over the next 6 to 12 months due to transmission system upgradation. On the call, management stated that the Bikaner-2 substation was currently seeing about 30% curtailment and that the grid had forecast the end of backdown by September 2026, while also clarifying this is external and uncertain.

Alongside curtailment, management discussed the deviation settlement mechanism as an emerging regulatory risk. They stated the issue was not settled, that it was challenged in court, and that the government was engaging to resolve it. Management said internal impact assessment was not mature enough to quantify publicly yet, and indicated that storage solutions were being evaluated as mitigation and as a value capture tool, with an update expected in a few months.

Balance sheet and leverage: scaling with disclosed guardrails

The balance sheet reflects the pace of build-out. Consolidated gross block increased to INR 128,236 million and capital work in progress rose to INR 53,392 million as of March 31, 2026. Net debt increased to INR 96,841 million from INR 63,220 million in FY25, in line with commissioning and under-construction assets.

Management pointed to leverage metrics they track, including Debt (net of liquid assets) to Adjusted EBITDA of 4.75x and DSCR of 1.3x for operational assets. They also highlighted that the weighted average loan profile is about 19 years against a weighted average PPA tenor of about 23 years.

Key takeaways from FY26

CleanMax FY26 was defined by commissioning-led growth and increasing penetration in Data and AI customers, backed by long-tenor PPAs and high repeat business. The company also entered a new operating regime with larger CTU exposure through its Rajasthan project, which brings near-term curtailment sensitivity. Alongside this, DSM remains an evolving regulatory topic, with management indicating that storage is being evaluated and an update could come in the next few months.

For investors, the headline is straightforward. Scale and contracting momentum are visible in the 5.7 GW contracted book and the jump in operational capacity. The next phase will be judged on execution of the contracted pipeline, how quickly new assets stabilise into reported earnings, and how effectively the company manages CTU curtailment and regulatory change risks.