Largest equity investment in clean energy made by EIB in 2013.
Glennmont Partners (“Glennmont”), one of the largest infrastructure vehicles dedicated to clean energy across Europe, has secured a €50 million investment in its second fund by the European Investment Bank. The investment is the single largest clean energy equity investment made by EIB this year.
Clean energy investment is a key focus for the EIB as it works to support the European Union’s stated policy objective to cut greenhouse-gas emissions across Europe by 20% over the next six years. In recent years the EIB’s annual lending in this sector has increased substantially reaching €3.3bn in 2012. As well as lending, the EIB makes equity investments and provides finance and expertise to projects across Europe. The EIB has a rigorous review process for all the projects that it chooses to invest in including considering their financial, technical and social long-term performance.
Commenting on the EIB investment, Joost Bergsma, CEO of Glennmont, said: “We are delighted that the EIB has chosen to invest in our second fund. It has developed a first class reputation for its work in clean energy and this investment further demonstrates that our independent, specialist approach is attractive to top-level investors. We share a common goal with the EIB to promote sustainable and secure sources of energy for the UK while also delivering consistent yield and long-term capital appreciation for investors.”
“Glennmont has an established track record and proven readiness to support renewable energy projects across Europe. The European Investment Bank is pleased to back projects that tackle a changing climate.” said Jonathan Taylor, European Investment Bank Vice President responsible for environment and climate lending.
Glennmont Partners was founded earlier this year following a spin-off of BNP Paribas Clean Energy Partners. Its seeks to raise long-term capital to invest in alternative power generation projects focusing on proven technologies such as wind, biomass, solar and small-scale hydro across the UK and continental Europe. Glennmont’s investment approach dovetails with the EIB’s strategy to back only carefully selected, risk managed investments that aim to deliver sustained performance and predictable returns for investors.
The EIB’s investment will be directly injected into Glennmont’s second clean energy infrastructure fund which now has commitments of €250 million from both new and existing investors from its first fund.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the long-term lending institution of the European Union owned by its Member States. It makes long-term finance available for sound investment in order to contribute towards EU policy goals.
Glennmont Partners is one of Europe’s largest fund managers focusing exclusively on investment in clean energy infrastructure. It raises long-term capital to invest in alternative power generation projects, such as wind farms, biomass power stations, solar parks and small-scale hydro power plants. Its carefully selected, risk managed investments deliver sustained performance and predictable returns over periods of 10 years or more. Formerly BNP Paribas Clean Energy Partners, the team has been working together since 2007 and has established a reputation for making intelligent, long-term investments that deliver absolute returns. Glennmont Partners is owned and managed by four partners: Joost Bergsma – CEO, Francesco Cacciabue – CFO, Peter Dickson – Technical Director and Scott Lawrence.
