Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA) has raised more than €1.6bn for its latest renewable energy fund, exceeding the fund’s initial target by 60%.
The manager said the amount raised by Macquarie Green Investment Group Renewable Energy Fund 2 (MGREF2) at close exceeded the fund’s initial minimum fundraising target of €1bn.
MIRA said the fund attracted commitments from 32 investors including pension funds, local government pension schemes, insurers and sovereign wealth funds.
Europe was the largest source of capital for the fundraise, with other commitments received from investors in Asia-Pacific and North America, said MIRA.
MGREF2, a 25-year closed-end fund will invest in a diversified portfolio of assets including platforms and construction and operational stage wind and solar projects in Western Europe, the US, Canada, Mexico, Japan, Taiwan, Australia and New Zealand.
MGREF2 is managed by MIRA and will draw on the technical expertise in Macquarie’s Green Investment Group (GIG) when investing in and managing construction stage projects, and to provide tailor-made green impact reporting to its underlying investors.
MGREF2 and GIG will also explore opportunities for co-investment.
MIRA said MGREF2 has made two investments to date, having acquired a 10% stake in the 576MW Gwynt y Môr Offshore Wind Farm in the UK and a 50% stake in a 268MW portfolio of operating residential rooftop solar projects across the US.
Leigh Harrison, head of MIRA EMEA, said: “Our changing climate presents profound challenges to our environment, economy and way of life. It is vital we take action to accelerate the shift to clean energy, building on the opportunities presented by rapid technological change, falling technology costs and strong political and regulatory support.
“As custodians of the world’s first dedicated operational offshore wind fund, we’ve been committed to developing a successor to harness deep institutional capital pools to help achieve net-zero. MGREF2 is the next step in this journey and we are delighted with the strong support the fund has received from our investors.”
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