Commerz Real acquires Spanish solar portfolio for klimaVest
29.04.2021 • 3 Reading Time
- 100 MWp nominal power already on the grid, another 31 MWp to follow by 2022
- Further diversification of the Spanish fund portfolio
Commerz Real has acquired a portfolio of three solar parks in Spain from an international consortium for its klimaVest impact fund. It comprises Cero Generation, a portfolio company of the Macquarie subsidiary Green Investment Group, and Bruc OPT Energy Partners, a company of the Canadian pension fund OPT-rust and Juan Béjar, founder and CEO of Spanish Bruc Management. The total rated output of 131 megawatt peak (MWp) corresponds to an annual electricity production of 230,506 megawatt-hours (MWh) and would cover the average demand of around 74,000 households. This saves carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions of around 63,520 tonnes per year. For klimaVest, this is already the second solar investment in Spain. In November 2020, the first impact fund for retail investors with a focus on tangible assets purchased a solar park in Tordesillas in the province of Valladolid. It has been connected to the grid since the beginning of this year and is expected to produce more than 74 gigawatt-hours in the first year. “We continue to see considerable growth potential for renewable energy in the Iberian Peninsula and will expand our investment activities accordingly,” comments Jan-Peter Müller, Head of Infrastructure Acquisitions at Commerz Real.
Of the three parks, two are located near Alvarado in the southwestern province of Badajoz. With a rated output of 50 MWp each, they have been in operation since August 2020. The third plant under the project name Castillejo is located in central Spain and is currently under development. Construction is scheduled to start at the beginning of 2022. After commissioning, it is expected to have a rated output of 31 MWp by the fourth quarter of 2022.
The klimaVest fund launched in November 2020 has now reached a volume of almost 400 million euros. In addition to the current transaction, the portfolio includes seven wind farms in Germany and Sweden as well as a solar park in Spain. In addition, 49.9 percent of the shares of a portfolio of fourteen onshore wind farms of EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG with 47 wind turbines and a total output of 133 megawatts were acquired in February 2021.
Unlike conventional sustainability funds, klimaVest is only invested in assets that make a measurable and thus demonstrable contribution to reducing CO₂ emissions. In addition, other strict sustainability parameters apply in accordance with the applicable EU Taxonomy Regulation. Investors can participate from 10,000 euros and receive regular reports on the climate impact achieved by the assets in the fund in addition to their performance. In addition, they can use a digital CO₂ calculator to calculate the impact of the investments on their personal carbon footprint depending on the amount they have subscribed. An investment horizon of more than five years is recommended. However, units in the open-end fund distributed in Germany can generally be redeemed on any trading day at the net asset value.
Of the three parks, two are located near Alvarado in the southwestern province of Badajoz. With a rated output of 50 MWp each, they have been in operation since August 2020. The third plant under the project name Castillejo is located in central Spain and is currently under development. Construction is scheduled to start at the beginning of 2022. After commissioning, it is expected to have a rated output of 31 MWp by the fourth quarter of 2022.
The klimaVest fund launched in November 2020 has now reached a volume of almost 400 million euros. In addition to the current transaction, the portfolio includes seven wind farms in Germany and Sweden as well as a solar park in Spain. In addition, 49.9 percent of the shares of a portfolio of fourteen onshore wind farms of EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG with 47 wind turbines and a total output of 133 megawatts were acquired in February 2021.
Unlike conventional sustainability funds, klimaVest is only invested in assets that make a measurable and thus demonstrable contribution to reducing CO₂ emissions. In addition, other strict sustainability parameters apply in accordance with the applicable EU Taxonomy Regulation. Investors can participate from 10,000 euros and receive regular reports on the climate impact achieved by the assets in the fund in addition to their performance. In addition, they can use a digital CO₂ calculator to calculate the impact of the investments on their personal carbon footprint depending on the amount they have subscribed. An investment horizon of more than five years is recommended. However, units in the open-end fund distributed in Germany can generally be redeemed on any trading day at the net asset value.