The Peruvian arm of Italian energy firm Enel has sold its stakes in Enel Generación Perú and Compañía Energética Veracruz for $1.3bn (€1.2bn) to Niagara Energy, a company controlled by an Actis fund.
Actis said its Actis Energy 5 vehicle had acquired Enel’s 87% stake in Enel Generación Perú and 100% of Compania Energetica Veracruz, a transaction with a $2.1bn enterprise value.
Actis has also acquired additional shares in Enel Generación Perú from minority investors as part of a full takeover bid.
The acquisition of Enel Generación Perú gives Actis access to a 2.2GW diversified energy generation portfolio in Peru with 12 operating assets and one more under construction. The portfolio includes wind, solar, hydro and thermal assets.
Actis said it plans to scale the platform and accelerate its renewables growth.
Nicolas Escallon, partner in the energy infrastructure business at Actis, said: “Actis has a long history of investing in Latin American energy generation, transmission and distribution. Having backed 14 companies in the power space in the region, we have been the largest owner and operator of wind and solar power generation in Latin America.
“This acquisition is a key addition to our energy portfolio and represents another important investment in the region for our flagship Energy 5 fund. It follows our proven strategy of investing behind world-class management teams to build and grow high-quality power-generation businesses in growth markets.”
Alberto Estefan, partner in the energy infrastructure business at Actis, said: “This diversified platform, which includes baseload natural gas as well as hydro and renewable assets, offers an attractive value proposition to the system and end users. It is also ideally positioned for continued growth.
“We’re acquiring the largest renewable portfolio in Peru and a large development pipeline, which allows us to play a significant role in the country’s decarbonisation. As ever, Actis wants to lead from the front on the energy transition and we believe it is key to driving value.”
Actis said the deal marks the 10th platform investment from Energy 5, representing $6bn of investable capital.
The acquisition also strengthens the manager’s energy portfolio in Latin America and follows the Actis Energy 5 investments in Serena Energy and Valia Energia in the region.
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