BlackRock’s UK renewable energy fund has grown to £1.1bn (€1.24bn) in commitments after the company opened the fund to more investors.
The Renewable Income UK fund, which invests in wind and solar power assets in the UK, raised £475m after a “third re-opening”, BlackRock said.
It said UK pension funds were showing strong demand for long-term income.
The fund’s manager Rory O’Connor, head of European renewables Investment at BlackRock Real Assets, said it “demonstrates the attraction of the fund’s stable and inflation-linked income profile in the current market environment”.
The fund has invested more than £600m in 40 wind and solar projects in the UK and aims to give immediate exposure to a portfolio of cash-generating renewable power assets.
According to a survey of its clients conducted in November, 63% of UK institutional investors intended to increase exposure to real assets.
“As institutional investors seek to generate sufficient return in the low return environment, many are turning to infrastructure and renewable energy assets to meet long-dated liabilities,” BlackRock said.
Last week, BlackRock raised £500m for its UK Strategic Alternative Income Fund — a hybrid vehicle investing in infrastructure debt, renewable energy, real estate debt, long-lease property and private credit.
In early July, the firm announced it had raised $1.65bn (€1.46bn) for its Global Renewable Power II fund, which it said was the largest wind and solar power fund in the world.
