Former Ayana Renewable Power chief Shivanand Nimbargi has been appointed Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of North Star Renewable Energy, the renewable energy platform established by British International Investment (BII) and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) in India.
North Star Renewable Energy has appointed Shivanand Nimbargi as Managing Director and CEO, with the renewable energy veteran set to lead the platform’s development and expansion across India.
The appointment was announced on September 28, 2026. North Star is a joint venture between BII and CIP through its Growth Markets Fund II (GMF II), established to invest in and develop renewable energy projects in India.
Nimbargi will focus on developing and scaling renewable energy projects while helping mobilise private capital for India’s energy transition.
Nimbargi brings more than three decades of energy and infrastructure experience
Nimbargi brings more than three decades of experience spanning energy, infrastructure and transport.
Before joining North Star, he served as Managing Director and CEO of Ayana Renewable Power, a renewable energy platform originally established by BII in India. Ayana’s own records identify Nimbargi as its MD and CEO, while professional profiles document his earlier leadership roles across the energy and infrastructure sectors.
Earlier in his career, Nimbargi held positions at Alstom and worked across areas including project management, business management, procurement and engineering. He subsequently led Green Infra, where his tenure included an expansion of the company’s operational renewable capacity from approximately 150 MW to about 700 MW, according to a profile published by Indian Infrastructure.
He later served as Managing Director and CEO of L&T Metro Rail (Hyderabad) before taking charge of Ayana in 2018.
Nimbargi holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering and has completed an Advanced Management Programme at INSEAD.
North Star targets solar, wind, hybrid and storage projects
North Star was launched in May 2026 by BII and CIP with a planned investment of $300 million, with each institution committing up to $150 million. The platform is intended to develop renewable energy assets while attracting additional private investment into India’s clean-energy sector.
The platform plans to invest across solar, wind, hybrid renewable energy and energy storage.
Its proposed projects are expected to generate more than 4 million MWh of clean electricity annually and avoid approximately 4 million tonnes of carbon emissions each year, according to the platform’s launch announcement.
Part of British Climate Partners
North Star is also a key investment within British Climate Partners (BCP), BII’s £1.1 billion climate finance initiative focused on supporting decarbonisation in coal-dependent economies, including India.
The initiative is designed to mobilise private capital into climate-related infrastructure and businesses. North Star represents BCP’s renewable-energy platform investment in India, linking BII’s development-finance role with CIP’s renewable infrastructure investment expertise.
Nimbargi on his appointment
Commenting on his appointment, Nimbargi said the platform comes at an important stage in India’s energy transition and highlighted the role of long-term capital and partnerships in building renewable energy businesses.
“I am pleased to join North Star at an important time for India’s energy transition,” Nimbargi said. “I look forward to working with BII and CIP to develop North Star and contribute to India’s growing renewable energy ambitions.”
Peter Jannik Sjøntoft, Partner in CIP’s Growth Markets Funds, and Rohit Anand, Managing Director and Head of Asia Infrastructure and Climate Direct Investments at BII, said Nimbargi’s experience in building a renewable energy platform would support North Star’s next phase of development.
His appointment places an experienced renewable energy executive at the helm of a newly established investment platform focused on expanding its project portfolio across India’s solar, wind, hybrid and storage segments.
