AHMEDABAD: Tulsi Tanti, the founder, chairman and managing director and one of the key promoters of Suzlon Group and Suzlon Energy Limited, died of a cardiac arrest late on Friday night. Tanti was also the chairman of Renewable Energy Council of Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to provide direction to India's green energy strategies.
The 64-year-old entrepreneur from Rajkot is survived by his children, Nidhi Tanti, and Pranav Tanti. He operated his business from Ahmedabad and has settled in Pune since 2004.
“With profound sadness, we inform you of the untimely demise of Tulsi R. Tanti, the Founder, the chairman and managing director, and one of the promoters of Suzlon Energy Limited on 1st October 2022. Shri Tanti suffered a cardiac arrest and passed away the same day,” the renewable energy major stated in its stock exchange filing.
“He suffered a heart attack soon after he landed in Pune and passed away the same day,” a source privy to the development said.
Tanti’s death came as a major setback to Suzlon Group and Suzlon Energy Limited. He was in Ahmedabad on Saturday at a media briefing to announce the opening of the company’s rights issue worth Rs 1,200 crore on October 11. “Suzlon Energy plans to repay its debt and reduce its interest liabilities using the fund, to meet working capital needs and deploy the rest of the fund for corporate requirements,” Tanti told the media.
Reiterating India’s clean energy commitments, Tanti highlighted the importance of reducing India’s energy import dependence. “The right time for doing business in the renewable segment is now. We just came in over two decades early,” Tanti quipped while interacting with the media, just a few hours ahead of the demise.
One of the pioneers of wind energy business in India, and a globally renowned expert on clean energy, Tanti envisioned the opportunity in the Indian renewable energy industry back in 1995, at a time when the global wind energy market was dominated by international players.
Under his leadership, Suzlon Energy is now the country’s largest wind energy player, which has 19.4 gigawatt (GW) of cumulative installed wind energy capacity with a 33% market share in India and a presence in 17 countries.
Tulsi Tanti is also Chairman of the Indian Wind Turbine Manufacturers Association (IWTMA) and a member of the Board of Management of TERI University, Delhi.
Tanti has been conferred with recognitions like 'Champion of the Earth' by the United Nation Environment Programme (UNEP) in 2009; 'Hero of the Environment' by TIME magazine for his contribution to raising awareness and initiating action on global climate change; 'Entrepreneur of the Year 2006' by Ernst & Young; 'World Wind Energy Award' by World Wind Energy Association 'Chanchlani Global Indian Award' by Canada India Foundation' and Global New Energy Business Leader Award' by China Energy, among other recognitions.
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