Noose tightens around Anil Ambani’s Reliance Power as ED files chargesheet

The money laundering case is linked to the issuance of an alleged fake bank guarantee of Rs 68 crore for securing a Solar Energy Corporation of India tender.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a chargesheet against Anil Ambani’s Reliance Power Limited and associated entities in a case involving the submission of fake bank guarantees to the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI) for securing a major energy storage project. The SECI is a public sector company under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy.

The chargesheet stems from ED’s probe into FIRs registered by the Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) — one filed by SECI against Reliance NU BESS Limited (a wholly owned subsidiary of Reliance Power), and another filed by Reliance NU BESS itself against Odisha-based Biswal Tradelink Private Limited and its managing director, Partha Sarathi Biswal.

FAKE GUARANTEES USED TO BID FOR TENDER

According to investigators, Reliance NU BESS submitted a bid for SECI’s tender to set up 1000 MW/2000 MWh standalone Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) projects. The bid required a bank guarantee of Rs 68.2 crore. Under tender rules, guarantees issued by foreign banks must be endorsed by their Indian branches or by the State Bank of India (SBI).

However, the ED’s probe revealed that Reliance Power, “with mala fide intent”, hired shell company Biswal Tradelink to procure a fraudulent bank guarantee. The so-called guarantees were alleg