Infracapital, the infrastructure equity investment arm of M&G, has agreed to acquire a portfolio of around 200 industrial energy solutions (IES) assets in Spain from Enel, Europe’s largest utility company.
IES helps industrial companies meet energy efficiency, carbon and cost reduction targets through a range of projects such as cogeneration and electrical infrastructure.
It is Infracapital’s second investment in Spain, and the first project in the country for its Infracapital Greenfield Partners I, a fund that raised £1.25bn (€1.48bn) in 2017.
The acquisition will expand Infracapital and Enel X’s Cogenio joint venture, a platform launched in Italy in December 2018 to develop energy efficiency projects for commercial and industrial companies.
Infracapital will acquire an 80% stake in a newly created Spanish company and Enel X will acquire the remaining 20%.
Infracapital will provide capital to fund future growth while Enel X, through its Spanish arm Endesa X, will operate the existing projects and develop new ones.
Michele Armanini, greenfield managing director at Infracapital, said: “Enel X’s strong customer relationships, track record and experience in developing and operating energy assets makes it an attractive partner in Spain.
“The portfolio is an exciting addition to the Cogenio platform and we look forward to continuing our successful partnership with Enel Group as we build a leading industrial energy solutions platform across Southern Europe, delivering sustainable growth and value for our investors.
“This acquisition aligns with our strategy of building platform businesses across Europe and demonstrates the growing greenfield investment opportunity in the region.”
Francesco Venturini, CEO of Enel X, said: “We are continuing to grow in the distributed-generation and energy-efficiency segments, tapping France as well as the Iberian region and replicating the model we already launched in Italy with the same partner, around one year ago.
“The shift in the energy paradigm, which has given centrality to customers during the transition towards a low-carbon world, provides us with the ideal framework for growth through this innovative business model.
“Looking ahead, we are expecting to sign more deals of this kind, in order to maximize the innovative solutions offered to our business customers wishing to play an active role in the energy transition.”
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