The everlasting misery of Suzlon

The story of a company that has been a turnaround in the making for the last decade. Except, it is far from redemption

Suzlon was once the fifth-largest wind energy firm in the world

Due to various reasons, the firm defaulted on its borrowings and fell into a debt trap

As Suzlon was about to turn the tables, wind energy tariffs fell to an all-time low

Will Suzlon eventually be a turnaround story?

Wind turbine supplier Suzlon’s initial public offering (IPO) in 2005 was nothing short of stellar. Almost overnight, its founder and chairman, Tulsi Tanti, became one of the richest people in India. At the time, the company was the fifth largest wind energy firm in the world. Two years later, it would establish itself as a major player in the sector, acquiring its German rival REpower for $2 billion (~Rs 13,000 crore). The winds of fortune were blowing in Suzlon’s favour.

Fortune, however, is fickle. Just a year later, Suzlon would begin its rapid descent from the stratosphere to rock bottom.

AUTHOR

Sidhartha Shukla

In his earlier stint at Moneycontrol, the website owned by the Network18 group, Sid wrote on cryptocurrencies, cybersecurity, business, and finance. Born in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, Sid has spent most of his life in Jalandhar, Punjab. He has a BSc in Mathematics from St Xavier’s College, Mumbai. Sid is a comic book nerd and a big fan of Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman and Brian Azzarello. He can be reached at sidhartha at the rate the-ken.com

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