Ampere Equity Fund and NIBC European Infrastructure Fund acquire 46MW Spanish solar portfolio from Grupo Aldesa
05-01-2010 | Zeist
Ampere Equity Fund and NIBC European Infrastructure Fund acquire 46MW Spanish solar portfolio from Grupo Aldesa. NIBC European Infrastructure Fund and Triodos Bank’s Ampere Equity Fund have just before year-end reached final agreement with the Spanish construction group Grupo Aldesa to acquire a 46MW solar portfolio consisting of 9 solar sites in Andalucia, Spain. The portfolio is the 3rd largest integrated operational solar portfolio in Spain.
The funds will initially acquire a 49% joint stake in the portfolio, and have the option to acquire the remaining 51% of the shares within a period of two years. The 9 plants were developed by Aldesa to a very high standard and are now all operational and enjoy the benefit of the attractive inflation adjusted Spanish feed-in tariff under RD661 for a period of 25 years. The portfolio has been financed with an 18 year €250m debt package provided by a syndicate of Spanish banks, including Santander, Banesto, La Caixa and Caja Madrid. The transaction is one of the largest renewables transactions in Europe in 2009, and is subject to clearance by the Dutch merger authorities. The parties have agreed not to disclose the final purchase price.
Both NIBC Infrastructure Partners and the Triodos Investment Management teams are particularly interested in investing in stable renewable energy infrastructure assets.
Eduard Ruijs, Investment Director with NIBC Infrastructure Partners commented: ‘The Aldesa acquisition completes the creation of an attractive renewables portfolio within our NIBC European Infrastructure Fund. We acquired in December a 82MW German wind portfolio, and signed in the autumn a framework to acquire circa 120MW of solar assets in Italy. We also successfully invested in a number of waste-to-energy assets in Belgium, Germany and the UK. We look forward to our continued and broader cooperation with our new partners Aldesa and Triodos Bank’.
Joris van der Geest, Fund Manager of Ampere Equity Fund adds: ‘Ampere Equity Fund is fully dedicated to investments in renewable energy projects in Western Europe. In 2009, we closed two other solar transactions in Spain and we see more opportunities in this market for us as a dedicated, long term investor. In the same year, we acquired a 22.5 MW wind farm in Germany and we signed agreements for wind and solar investments in Germany, France and Italy. The Aldesa solar portfolio is of a very high quality and fits in our strategy to cooperate with top notch project developers such as Aldesa.
Plenium Partners, a Spanish merchant bank specialised in renewable energy and infrastructure investments, collaborated in the origination, structuring and execution of the transaction.
NIBC and Triodos were advised by Allen & Overy, Astrom and Ernst & Young.
NIBC European Infrastructure Fund
NIBC European Infrastructure Fund is a EUR 347 million infrastructure fund investing in member states of the European Union. The Fund is managed by NIBC Infrastructure Partners, which has local representation in London, The Hague and Frankfurt. The core investor base of the Fund consists of large Benelux based pension funds and financial institutions. The Fund’s objective is to generate long-term stable and predictable cash flows and returns for its investors through long- term direct investment in corporate and project-based infrastructure assets. The Fund’s core sectors of investment are renewable energy, waste management, roads and transportation infrastructure, social infrastructure and oil and gas storage and distribution facilities. NIBC Infrastructure Partners is currently raising funds for a new Renewables Investment vehicle.
Ampere Equity Fund
Ampere Equity Fund invests in renewable energy projects in Western Europe, with amounts ranging from EUR 10-50 million per investment. The fund focuses on investments in energy producing assets applying proven technology, such as on shore wind, offshore wind, solar pv, concentrated solar power and biomass power plants, providing stable and predictable long term returns for its investors. Triodos Investment Management, a part of Triodos Bank with over twenty-five years of experience in renewable energy investments, acts as the Fund Manager of Ampere Equity Fund.