New Delhi, Oct. 6 -- Marsons Ltd, a Kolkata-based maker of extra-high-voltage (EHV) power transformers, and New York-based private equity firm Cleanhill Partners said on Tuesday they intend to form a joint venture to expand transformer distribution, service and manufacturing in the US and Canada.

The planned joint venture would combine Marsons' engineering and manufacturing with Cleanhill's market network, capital and operating expertise, the two firms said in a statement. The venture's longer-term plan is to make transformers in North America, they said.

The companies did not disclose the investment size, timelines or other details. They said the joint venture depends on definitive documents and necessary approvals, and may change.

"Marsons brings proven manufacturing capabilities, strong engineering credentials, and established execution in the U.S. market," Cleanhill managing partners Ash Upadhyaya and Rakesh Wilson said. Marsons CEO Harshvardhan Kotia said the venture "gives us the capital, market reach, and operational support to accelerate from project-by-project execution toward becoming a strategic infrastructure partner across North America."

Marsons said it is executing orders for US renewable energy and utility projects, including generator step-up transformers of up to 200 MVA and pad-mounted units at multiple locations.

The companies said North America faces a transformer shortage, with lead times beyond 24 months. Consultancy Wood Mackenzie estimated in 2025 that US power transformer supply would fall about 30% short of demand, with imports making up roughly 80% of supply. It said demand for power transformers had risen 116% since 2019.

Marsons has so far served the U.S. mainly as an exporter and most of its business is in India. The company says it is the only EHV transformer maker in eastern India and the Northeast. Its annual capacity is 12,000 MVA and is being expanded to 26,000 MVA.

Cleanhill invests in power generation, energy storage, grid modernisation and domestic manufacturing. On Sept 3, the PE firm and Goldman Sachs Alternatives agreed to sell EPC Power, a maker of power conversion systems, to Flex for $4.4 billion. Cleanhill's portfolio also includes Jule Power and FTC Solar.

Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from VC Circle.