Australian infrastructure fund manager Infrastructure Capital Group (ICG) has raised more than A$150 million ($108 million) for its newly launched Australian Renewables Income Fund (ARIF), including a record investment from the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC). The new capital commitments from the CEFC and Australian superannuation funds increase ICG’s renewable energy fund size to A$540 million ($390 million).
The A$100 million ($72 million) investment from the CEFC is its largest equity investment in renewable energy to date, representing an almost 40 percent increase in its renewables equity portfolio.
The additional capital commitments make ARIF one of the largest renewable energy funds in Australia. ARIF is the third investment fund for ICG, which has invested in the renewable energy sector for more than 12 years.
ICG managing director Tom Laidlaw said that ARIF provides investors dedicated exposure to renewable energy assets and a unique opportunity to invest in an existing renewable energy portfolio.
“With the additional capital, ARIF is well poised to further diversify the existing portfolio of high-quality investments with a number of prospective investments identified across a range of renewable energy technologies.”
ICG’s CIO Andrew Pickering noted that Australia’s expanding energy generation network is creating more opportunities for investors. Over 4 gigawatts of wind and solar committed projects are due to reach commercial operation over the next 24 months to 36 months, requiring more than A$5 billion ($3.6 billion) of investment.
ICG will continue to raise additional capital for ARIF from domestic and international investors during the course of 2019.