Climate Investment Newsletter 4/25 - 5/8
Individual Deals and Market Watch
TPG closes Rise Climate Fund at $7.3bn [Business Wire]
- With the final close, TPG Rise Climate reaches its hard cap, bringing together a unique blend of capital from some of the world’s most prominent institutional investors and a diverse set of industry-leading global companies.
- The three-year note, offering a 2.5 per cent return on a minimum investment of HK$10,000, was 1.2 times oversubscribed
TenneT issues EUR-3.85bn green bond [Renewables Now]
- Transmission system operator (TSO) TenneT Holding BV has successfully issued a green bond of EUR 3.85 billion (USD 4.15bn) that drew solid investor demand, with orderbooks reaching EUR 8 billion after final terms.
World Energy gets permits for USD-2bn California green fuels project [Renewables Now]
- US fuel maker World Energy LLC has obtained key permits for the expansion of its Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) plant in Southern California, a USD-2-billion (EUR 1.84bn) project in which it will partner with hydrogen producer Air Products and industrial company Honeywell (NASDAQ:HON).
Primergy's mega PV-plus-storage project in Nevada gets USD 1.9bn in funds [Renewables Now]
- The developer of the Gemini project has secured USD 1.9 billion (EUR 1.77bn) in debt and tax equity to reach financial close on the ambitious scheme that will build 690 MW of solar and 380 MW of battery storage capacity near Las Vegas, Nevada.
Shell agrees to buy India’s Sprng Energy for $1.55 billion [Mint]
- The deal will triple Shell’s operational renewables capacity and help it achieve net-zero carbon emissions by 2050
- The proceeds of the Green Bonds will be used to finance the capital costs of two transmission projects known as the "Central East Energy Connect Transmission Project" and the "Smart Path Reliability Transmission Project". The bonds will be payable solely from revenues derived from the funded projects (and not NYPA’s general credit) and, secondarily, by AGM’s unconditional guaranty of timely principal and interest payments.
Sensata strikes USD-580m deal for storage and power conversion firm Dynapower [Renewables Now]
- US industrial technology company Sensata Technologies (NYSE:ST) said it has inked a deal to buy Vermont-based energy storage and power conversion specialist Dynapower Company LLC to advance its electrification and clean energy strategy.
UPSIDE Foods bites into $400m round to serve cultivated meat later this year [Tech Crunch]
- Temasek and the Abu Dhabi Growth Fund co-led the round and were joined by Cargill, Givaudan and Tyson Foods and individual investors, including Bill Gates, John Doerr and Kimbal and Christiana Musk. Also investing in this round are Baillie Gifford, Cercano Management, CPT Capital, Norwest Venture Partners, SALT Fund, SoftBank Vision Fund 2, SOSV’s Indie Bio and Synthesis Capital.
Beta secures $375M in latest funding round [eVTOL]
- Vermont-based eVTOL startup Beta Technologies has secured US$375 million in its latest series B funding round, the company recently announced.
Origis Energy obtains USD-375m credit facility for solar pipeline [Renewables Now]
- US renewables platform Origis Energy has closed a USD-375-million (EUR 348m) credit facility for its solar and energy storage development project pipeline.
Norway's Scatec issues green bonds worth $335 mln to refinance projects in Egypt [Reuters]
- Norway's Scatec (SCATC.OL) has issued green bonds worth $335 million to refinance six solar projects in the southern Egyptian city of Aswan, a statement by the Egyptian cabinet said.
University of California puts $300 million in climate-related ETFs [Pensions & Investments]
- SSGA said in a news release it was introducing the SPDR MSCI USA Climate Paris Aligned ETF and the SPDR MSCI ACWI Climate Paris Aligned ETF. A University of California Office of the President spokesman confirmed that UC Investments had invested $150 million in each fund.
Sun King scores $260 million to ramp up off-grid solar access in Africa [Impact Alpha]
- Sun King, launched (as Greenlight Planet) in Chicago 15 years ago, was one of the earliest makers and distributors of solar lanterns and solar home systems for Africa. The company has stuck to a “direct to consumer” model, selling its products on a pay-as-you-go basis via 15,000 field agents in 40 countries.
IDG-backed Chinese solar energy firm Gaojing rakes in $251m in Series A round [Deal Street Asia]
- China’s Guangdong Gaojing Solar Energy Technology has raked in 1.6 billion yuan ($251.3 million) in a Series A round of financing to speed up the construction of photovoltaic (PV) silicon wafers production facilities
Eos Energy arranges USD-200m standby equity purchase agreement [Renewables Now]
- US zinc-based energy storage solutions provider Eos Energy Enterprises Inc (NASDAQ:EOSE) said it secured a USD-200-million (EUR 189.2m) financing commitment from an affiliate of alternative investment manager Yorkville Advisors.
EV-charging startup FreeWire raises $125 million from investors [Free Wire Tech]
- FreeWire Technologies Inc. said it has privately raised $125 million from investors including asset manager BlackRock Inc. to increase supply of its electric-vehicle chargers.
Sense closes $105 million Series C with Blue Earth Capital as lead investor [Cision]
- Sense, the leader in real-time home energy intelligence, announced the close of a $105 million Series C financing led by Blue Earth Capital. TELUS Ventures and MCJ Collective also joined the round, along with previous investors including Schneider Electric, Energy Impact Partners, Prelude Ventures, and iRobot. This brings Sense's funding to date to nearly $157 million USD.
Macro Commitments
Germany pledges 10 billion euros for India's climate action targets [The Week]
- Germany committed an additional 10 billion euros assistance to India to help achieve climate action targets set for 2030 which include sourcing 50 per cent energy requirement from renewables and installing 500 GW of non-fossil fuel electricity capacity.
DOE $3.1 billion for EV battery supply chain, $45 million for development [Green Car Reports]
- The DOE announced $3.16 billion for the domestic battery supply chain. Part of more than $7 billion the infrastructure law has designated for battery production, it will fund new, retrofitted, and expanded manufacturing facilities, manufacturing demonstrations, and battery recycling, according to a DOE press release.
Stellantis, Trudeau invest $2.8 billion to boost EV production in Canada [Tech Crunch]
- Stellantis will spend $2.8 billion (CAD $3.6 billion) to increase production of electric vehicles at two of its Canadian plants, the company said. The funding is a portion of the $35.5 billion Stellantis dedicated to electric vehicles and new software over the next year in its push to move away from internal combustion engines and be carbon net zero by 2038.
Sunshine Hydro presents USD-1.4bn green H2 "superhybrid" for Queensland [Renewables Now]
- Australian renewable energy company Sunshine Hydro unveiled plans for an AUD-2-billion (USD 1.44bn/EUR 1.35bn) pumped hydropower and green hydrogen project in Queensland, in partnership with domestic advisory firm Energy Estate.
Fort Nelson First Nation partnering to build $1.2B hydrogen facility [Western Investor]
- In a joint statement, the Fort Nelson First Nation and Hydrogen Naturally Inc. said they are working together to study the feasibility of the project, which could produce up to one million tonnes of hydrogen.
- 'Big 4' accounting and professional services firm Deloitte has announced a significant expansion and investment in Deloitte Sustainability & Climate, its global sustainability advisory practice. The firm projects that the new enterprise will be one of the largest global networks of sustainability experience, and is investing US$1bn in client-related services, data-driven research, and assets and capabilities.
Viessmann pledges €1bn for heat pumps and green solutions [Cooling Post]
- The announcement comes after the Allendorf-based manufacturer reported record revenues in 2021 of €3.4bn, up 21% on the previous year. The growth was driven by a 41% leap in demand for heat pumps.
Germany's EDL plans EUR 700m green kerosene plant near Leipzig [Renewables Now]
- German plant engineering company EDL is planning to build an industrial-scale plant near the city of Leipzig to produce 50,000 tonnes of green kerosene annually and support the decarbonisation of the aviation industry.
Iberdrola to invest EUR 500m to electrify Volkswagen gigafactory in Spain [Renewables Now]
- Spanish utility Iberdrola SA (BME:IBE) announced a plan to invest around EUR 500 million (USD 528.5m) in renewable energy, energy efficiency and other electrification solutions for Volkswagen’s new electric vehicle (EV) battery factory in Spain.
DOE close to loaning $500 million for world’s largest green hydrogen plant [Solar Power World]
- The U.S. Department of Energy’s Loan Programs Office issued a conditional commitment to provide $504.4 million in debt financing on what could be the world’s largest industrial green hydrogen production and storage facility.
Canada provides USD 235m for clean energy in remote communities [Renewables Now]
- The Canadian government has made an additional CAD 300 million (USD 235m/EUR 220m) of funding available for clean energy projects in indigenous, rural and remote communities across the country.
Mitsubishi to pour $100m into Bill Gates-backed clean tech push [Nikkei Asia]
- Mitsubishi Corp. will contribute $100 million to a program supported by Bill Gates that aims to accelerate the deployment of green innovations like hydrogen that are close to ready for market.
EU’s Innovation Fund launches €100M call for innovative low-carbon projects [Offshore Energy]
- The European Commission has launched a call for small-scale projects focusing on innovative technologies in renewable energy, heavy industry, energy storage, and carbon capture as part of its Innovation Fund.
Pathways, Frameworks, Case Studies, Research, Climate Science
- According to a review by the SUN DAY Campaign of data newly released by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) and the US Energy Information Administration (EIA), solar, wind and other renewable energy sources (i.e., biomass, geothermal, hydropower) provided 96.3% of the domestic electrical generating capacity added in January and February 2022.
- The Netherlands’ Upfield has disclosed its corporate methane footprint. It marks the first large food company in the world to do so. It claims to have released the data in a bid to push methane transparency into the food industry, alongside carbon declarations. To date, only the energy industry has been called on to offer methane disclosure, despite the food and agriculture industry creating more emissions.
McKinsey expects fossil fuels to peak by 2030 [Energy Monitor]
- Renewables are projected to grow threefold by 2050, accounting for 50% of power generation globally by 2030, forecasts McKinsey & Company.
Beyond CO2, tropical forests a ‘cool’ solution to climate crisis, study finds [Mongabay]
- Tropical forests, with their speedy uptake of carbon and the local cooling they provide — by humidifying the air, for example — are considered a “double win” for the climate.
2021 tropical forest loss figures put zero-deforestation goal by 2030 out of reach [Mongabay]
- The world lost a Cuba-sized area of tropical forest in 2021, putting it far off track from meeting the no-deforestation goal by 2030 that governments and companies committed to at last year’s COP26 climate summit.
Investment in forests must increase fourfold – report [Agriland]
- The 2022 State of the World’s Forests Report has outlined the potential of forests to tackle climate change, but states further investment is vital to do so.
- The newly released AgFunder 2022 Agrifoodtech Investment Report reveals that the Innovative Food category, encompassing alt protein companies across plant-based, cell-cultured, fermentation and functional ingredients, raised $4.8 billion last year with a 102% YOY growth, representing 9.3% of all Agri Food Tech.
Japan releases draft key report on carbon credit use, backs wide international access [Carbon Pulse]
- A government-appointed study group has released a draft set of guidelines and principles for how Japan should make use of carbon credits to meet its climate targets.
Clean energy transition will generate $27Trn prospects in Africa: IEA [Running Africa]
- Tae-Yoon Kim, an expert at IEA, said that Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and Nigerian countries are a significant part of the global mineral resources, vital for clean energy technologies.
- As per Kim, the volatile growth in deployment of clean energy can create a market opportunity of $27 trillion up till 2050 for the key equipment manufacturers.
- The study by PwC Luxembourg draws on the accounting firm's forecasts and survey of investors and bond issuers in 2021 and comes as investors are increasingly concerned about climate change and Europe's efforts to shift towards a more sustainable economy.
Global vegan yogurt market to more than double over next decade [Vegconomist]
- A recent market report states that the global market for vegan yogurt is currently valued a US$ 2.2 billion and is set to increase at a robust 8.9% CAGR, reaching a market valuation of US$ 5.1 billion in 2032, with offline sales accounting for the dominant share.
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