Danish labour-market pension fund P+ has invested DKK750m (€100.6m) in loans for renewable energy projects via Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners’s (CIP) first debt fund.
The DKK150bn Copenhagen-based pension fund for academics said it had made the investment in CIP’s Green Credit Fund I as it works towards its goal for climate-friendly investments to constitute at least 15% of total assets - and at least 50% of assets in the savings product P+ Sustainable - in 2030.
Kåre Hahn Michelsen, the pension fund’s CIO, said: “P+ already has investments in several of CIP’s funds, which have delivered satisfactory returns.
“In the same way, we have a clear expectation that the credit fund can also deliver an attractive return to our members, at the same time increasing our exposure to green energy production across several asset classes, so that an even larger part of the portfolio contributes to supporting our ambitious climate goals,” said Hahn Michelsen, who is set to become chief executive officer of P+ at the end of September.
CIP said when the Green Credit Fund I was launched in February last year with €320m in seed capital, that its targeted size was €1bn.
The fund provides private project finance debt with subordinated risk characteristics supporting renewable energy projects globally, according to CIP.
The focus is on green and brownfield projects in offshore wind, onshore wind, solar PV, biomass, storage and transmission assets, with a geographic focus on Europe, North America and ”selective jurisdictions” in the Asia-Pacific region, it said.
P+ said CIP’s debt fund was classified as fully sustainable under Article 9 of the EU’s Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation, adding that it was important to the pension fund that the asset manager did what was necessary to avoid negative impact on both people and the environment.
“Responsible investments must also be socially responsible. It is a theme we follow closely as part of our active ownership,” said Hahn Michelsen.
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