Context:

Recently, Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited (SECI) under the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy has been granted the Navratna status, making it the 23^rd Navratna of the country.

More on the news:

• The company reported a consolidated annual turnover of 13118 Crore and growth of 20.85% from the previous year. 
• SECI reported a Profit After Tax (PAT) of Rs 510.92 crore, reflecting a growth of 34.89% for the financial year 2023-24.

What does SECI do?

• SECI serves as an implementing agency for the development of Solar, Wind, and Hybrid Projects as part of fulfilling the country’s Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs).
• SECI issues tenders to select Renewable Energy (RE) developers for projects across India or specific states.
• SECI holds a Category-I (highest) Power Trading License for trading power nationwide.
• SECI currently manages Renewable Energy projects with a total capacity of 122.7 MW.
• SECI provides Project Management Consultancy for Renewable Energy projects to public sector and government entities.

About SECI:

• SECI is a leading CPSE dedicated to the development and expansion of Renewable Energy (RE) capacity in India.
• It has a cumulative generation awarded capacity of 69.25 GW and an annual power trading volume upwards of 42 billion Units.
• SECI has been named as one of the Renewable Energy Implementing Agencies (REIAs) of India.
• SECI was incorporated in the year 2011 as a ‘Not for profit’ company under the Companies Act, 1956, and converted to a commercial company in 2015 under the Companies Act, 2013.

Significance of Navratna Status: 

Classification as a Navratna CPSE enables SECI towards the following: - 

• Enhanced autonomy in financial and operational matters.
• In accelerating the company’s growth path through better agility by increasing efficiency and empowering employees.
• Improvement in geographical presence and technology focus by supporting investment plans, driving growth, expanding market reach, and achieving long-term gains.

Criteria for granting the Navratna Status:

The Miniratna Category – I and Schedule ‘A’ CPSEs, which have obtained ‘excellent’ or ‘very good’ ratings under the Memorandum of Understanding system in three of the last five years, and have composite scores of 60 or above in the six selected performance parameters.

• net profit to net worth
• manpower cost to total cost of production/services
• profit before depreciation, interest, and taxes to capital employed
• profit before interest and taxes to turnover
• earning per share
• inter-sectoral performance.