A US$30bn (€27.4bn) climate-focused fund launched today by the United Arab Emirates (UAE) at the COP28 Climate Summit in Abu Dhabi has committed US$5bn to energy transition funds managed by Brookfield and BlackRock.
Altérra, established by Abu Dhabi-based investment manager Lunate, is committing US$2bn to Brookfield Global Transition Fund II, to invest in clean energy and transform businesses in carbon-intensive sectors, and is providing a further US$1bn to help launch Brookfield’s new Catalytic Transition Fund, which will focus on emerging markets.
Altérra has also committed US$1bn to BlackRock’s Climate Transition Oriented Private Debt strategy and has pledged the same amount to invest in, or co-invest alongside, BlackRock’s infrastructure equity business, including the BlackRock Global Infrastructure Fund IV and Climate Finance Partnership.
The capital is coming from Altérra Acceleration, which has been allocated US$25bn to invest in climate strategies. Another US$5bn has been allocated to Altérra Transformation to invest specifically in the Global South.
COP28 director general Majid Al Suwaidi, who will become CEO of Altérra, said: “Altérra’s goal is to mobilise US$250bn in capital by 2030 and stimulate a new climate economy in emerging and developing markets that achieve both climate and commercial outcomes.
“The partnership with Brookfield is a powerful demonstration of the UAE’s commitment to meaningful climate action and represents our wider ambition to fundamentally strengthen global climate finance.”
Brookfield said other investors, including Canadian institutional investor Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec and Singapore state-owned investment company Temasek, have expressed interest in contributing capital to the Catalytic Transition Fund, which will focus on Asia-Pacific, Eastern Europe, Latin America and the Middle East.
Mark Carney, chair and head of transition investing at Brookfield Asset Management, said: “The Catalytic Transition Fund is an innovative private sector solution to this imperative which combines institutional capital and Brookfield’s decades of experience in renewable power and transition investing.
“The UAE’s substantial commitments to our transition investing platform will greatly accelerate progress towards Brookfield’s net-zero emissions target while supporting vital clean growth initiatives across the globe.”
BlackRock said it would make the UAE a focus for its transition and blended finance activities, investing in the continued growth of its asset management and advisory businesses in the country.
Al Suwaidi said: “BlackRock brings climate and industry-specific expertise and a broad variety of opportunities to invest in climate-related projects at scale. It is a high-calibre business which has committed to further enhancing its on-the ground presence in the UAE.
“We look forward to collaborating closely with BlackRock as we invest to accelerate the transition to a new climate economy and a low carbon economy across markets globally.”
Larry Fink, chairman and CEO of BlackRock, said: “The launch of Altérra will itself not only help mobilise much needed capital to support the transition in the Global South, it can also serve as a blueprint for other sovereigns and private sector actors to replicate, partnering to help unleash the trillions of dollars needed in developed and emerging markets.”
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