Renewable Energy - Strategy and positioning
Investing in renewable energy
In 2006, Crédit Agricole Private Equity launched Capenergie I, the first French institutional fund devoted entirely to renewable energy and energy efficiency, with capacity of €109 million. Its successor, Capenergie II, is in the process of raising funds.
Renewable energy: a sector offering lasting growth
Thanks to the commitments made by the European Union Member States to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 20%, improve energy efficiency by 20% and ensure that renewable energy account for 20% of energy consumption by 2020, the renewable energy sector has seen extremely robust growth, particularly in wind energy and solar power.
This momentum has resulted in the creation and development of a number of companies and infrastructures. The long-term future of this growth should be secured by the need to renew electricity generation capacity.
France is one of the most active countries in renewable energy in Europe alongside Italy, Germany and Spain.
The Capenergie investment funds devoted to renewable energy
The Capenergie funds invest in all areas of renewable energy, including solar power, wind energy, hydroelectricity and biomass.
Its investments are made using two complementary approaches:
- acquiring minority stakes in the form of Expansion Capital (e.g. acquiring stakes in companies developing hydroelectric power plants);
- acquiring majority stakes in green energy generation infrastructures (e.g. acquiring stakes in solar power plants.
In addition to making a financial investment, the Renewable Energy team offers its investment know-how, its pro-active approach and its expertise to help entrepreneurs with the development and financing of their innovative business plans.
The most industrial financial backer
The Renewable Energy team currently consists of four investors with complementary profiles and of different nationalities, specialising in specific regions (France, Southern Europe and Northern Europe). It draws on all of the skills of private equity.
The team favours close collaboration with managers. Thanks to its sector positioning, it aims to help with reviewing its partners’ strategies and to support them in implementing their expansion plans.
In late 2009, Serge Savasta, Head of the Renewable Energy team, was voted director of the Syndicat des Energies Renouvelables. He is the first and only financier present on the board of directors and is involved in promoting the industry among the main public and private operators.
