The Emerging Africa and Asia Infrastructure Fund (EAAIF) has acquired a 50% stake in British International Investment’s (BII) $75m (€65.8m) mezzanine debt facility for Macquarie Asset Management’s pan-Asian renewable energy platform Blueleaf Energy.
EAAIF, a Private Infrastructure Development Group company managed by Ninety One, is committing $37.5m to the facility, which was originally underwritten by BII last year to support Blueleaf in delivering 850MW of greenfield renewable energy capacity in India.
The transaction marks an expansion of EAAIF’s climate infrastructure investments in Asia, and this is the fund’s third financing in the renewable energy sector in India.
BII will retain the remaining 50% stake, worth $37.5m, and continue to support Blueleaf’s growth with the aim of mobilising further private capital over time.
Jenny Chapman, UK minister for development, said: “This deal shows that where British International Investment leads, other investors follow. The partnership between BII and Ninety One is not only good for business, it’s good for the planet too, helping Blueleaf to support clean energy transitions through solar, wind and energy storage projects across India.
“This is a great example of the type of partnership the UK’s emerging markets and developing economies investor taskforce is bringing about, and we want to see even more as part of our modern approach to development.”
Leslie Maasdorp, CEO, BII, said: “This transaction is a strong example of our originate-to-share approach under British Climate Partners, where we deploy our capital to unlock projects and then bring in institutional investors to scale them.
“By recycling our capital and partnering with impact investors like EAAIF, which is managed by Ninety One, we can accelerate the build-out of clean energy infrastructure while maximising our impact.”
Hendrik du Toit, founder and CEO, Ninety One, the fund manager of EAAIF, said: “Mobilising capital at scale is essential to accelerating the energy transition in emerging markets. This transaction demonstrates how development finance institutions and private investors can work together to expand access to renewable energy infrastructure by bringing additional capital to projects with strong long-term fundamentals.
“It also marks an important step in growing EAAIF’s climate infrastructure investments in Asia, while supporting India’s ambitions to build a more resilient, low-carbon economy.”
Philippe Valahu, CEO, PIDG, said: “By bringing EAAIF into Blueleaf Energy’s growth journey, we can support renewable energy deployment at greater scale, while helping to deepen the pool of capital available for India’s clean energy transition.
“India will be central to global progress on climate action, and this investment reflects PIDG’s commitment to backing scalable solutions for meaningful impact.”
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