Solar power producer Amarenco Groupas closed a EUR150 million investment led by Tikehau Capital, the alternative asset management and investment group.
Amarenco started a capital raising process at the beginning of the year to secure a total investment capacity of EUR3 billion to fund growth in Europe, Asia Pacific and the Middle East markets whilst maintaining Amarenco as an independent, founder-led company.
This new capital commitment a share capital increase and an equity line totalling EUR150 million. The capital raise was subscribed to by the co-founders themselves, by IDIA Capital Investissement and by Tikehau Capital through its Energy transition fund.
Amarenco is well-placed and funded to convert its significant current pipeline and M&A deal flow into value-generating assets from its global headquarters in Cork, Ireland, and its operational hubs in Lagrave (France), Porto (Portugal), Vienna (Austria), Muscat (Oman), Singapore, Taipei (Taiwan), Bankgok (Thailand), Hanoi (Vietnam), and Tokyo (Japan).
While Amarenco expects to have more than 1GW of projects under construction during 2021 as a result of its M&A activity in Iberia and Asia-Pacific and the maturity of its development pipeline in Oman, Amarenco intends to accelerate its growth strategy taking a uniquely flexible approach to partnering with local and regional developers, asset owners and IPPs in order to differentiate itself in its chosen markets.
“This new capital commitment will contribute to Amarenco’s ambitions to have more than 1GW of projects under construction in the coming months and 3GW by 2023 in Europe, APAC and Middle East. We have no doubt that the entrepreneurial spirit of Tikehau Capital and its international network will contribute to the achievement of our goals. We are happy to welcome Pierre Devillard and Pierre Abadie from the private equity team of Tikehau Capital to our board”, say Amarenco’s co-founders Olivier Carré, Nick Howard, John Mullins and Alain Desvigne.
“We are thrilled to invest in Amarenco and thus partner with the shareholder members and management in the deployment of an ambitious development plan. Thanks to its know-how and its global presence, Amarenco is in a unique position to benefit from the growth trend acceleration in solar power production which is key to accompanying the energy transition globally,” said Pierre Abadie and Mathieu Badjeck, co-managers of the Energy transition fund of Tikehau Capital.
“The arrival of Tikehau Capital as a shareholder marks a decisive turning point in the company’s development. By reinvesting six months after becoming a shareholder, IDIA CI has demonstrated its confidence in the deployment strategy implemented by Amarenco’s managers and teams. In addition, this new transaction is an opportunity for the company to perpetuate the issue of Responsible Convertible Bonds indexed on the achievement of environmental and societal KPIs, a new quasi-equity instrument structured by IDIA CI,” adds Maud Minoustchin, Portfolio Director Energy Transition at IDIA Capital Investissement.
