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Law firm DLA Piper has launched an investment management and funds (IM&F) team, which is now a "sector community" within the firm. Led by senior partner Catherine Pogorzelski, the team consists of 120 partners and 350 team members. The firm consolidated its investment management and institutional investor practices in February 2024. The IM&F team covers areas such as private funds, fund lifecycle, investors and investments, and legal and regulatory advice. The team's enhanced capabilities aim to support DLA Piper's international growth strategy and provide seamless legal counsel to clients across multiple disciplines and jurisdictions. [Extracted from the article]

The European Commission has approved the acquisition of euNetworks by APG Asset Management and Stonepeak. APG, a subsidiary of Dutch pension fund ABP, and Stonepeak will jointly control the European bandwidth infrastructure company. Stonepeak initially acquired an interest in euNetworks in 2017 and has held the majority of shares since then. The acquisition was notified to the EC on May 10, 2024, and after investigation, it was determined that the transaction would not raise competition concerns. euNetworks is headquartered in London and operates in 53 cities across 17 countries, owning and operating 18 metropolitan fibre networks. [Extracted from the article]

Cypress Creek Renewables, a solar company based in California, has hired Michael Discenza as their interim CFO. Discenza previously worked at Transurban for over 7 years, serving as acting president of North America. He has experience in overseeing strategic planning, development, construction, and financial operations of toll road businesses. Discenza has also worked in various roles in investment management, providing strategic advice and supporting growth initiatives in different sectors such as infrastructure, finance, technology, and development. [Extracted from the article]

The South Carolina Retirement System (SCRS) has invested $40 million in the Peppertree Capital Fund X, a private equity firm focused on investing in growing digital infrastructure companies. The fund, which has over $6.5 billion under management and 150 investments, will invest in US digital infrastructure such as cell towers, fiber, small cells, and distributed antenna systems. The Peppertree Capital Fund X had raised over $1.06 billion by the end of 2023 and has also received a $50 million commitment from the San Francisco Employees Retirement System. This is the third investment by SFERS in the fund. [Extracted from the article]

Augusta Investment Management is preparing to launch a fund that will allow institutional investors to access reservoir hydro power purchase agreements (PPAs) as an investment product. The fund, called Augusta Investment Management Fund IV, aims to raise €400 million ($427.7 million) for its first offering and has a 5-year duration. The strategy involves purchasing contracts for a percentage of the output of hydro plants in the Nordics, where reservoir hydro is a major source of baseload energy supply. Augusta aims to achieve a return of 15% net of fees after 5 years or 12% if it stays for the full term. [Extracted from the article]

Stephen Rupert has been appointed as the Chief Investment Officer (CIO) of Canada Growth Fund Investment Management (CGFIM). In his new role, he will be responsible for overseeing the portfolio construction strategy and investment execution activities of the C$15 billion Canada Growth Fund (CGF). Rupert previously served as the Managing Director and Head of Americas, Infrastructure Investments at CGFIM's parent company, PSP Investments. CGF is a public investment fund focused on accelerating the deployment of energy transition technologies. CGFIM is currently recruiting for a senior director of cleantech investments. [Extracted from the article]

Lars Dijkstra has been appointed as a statutory director on the board of directors of investment management at Dutch pension fund PGGM, starting on June 1, 2024. He previously served as the interim CIO for the fund and currently leads the front of office investment teams for PGGM client Pensioenfonds Zorg en Welzijn (PFZW). Dijkstra's main responsibility will be to develop the 3D Investment Strategy, which aims to organize PFZW's entire portfolio in terms of risk, returns, and sustainability by 2030. Prior to joining PGGM, Dijkstra held positions at Van Lanschot Kemper and Philips Pensionfund. [Extracted from the article]

HMC Capital has appointed Julia Gillard, former Prime Minister of Australia, as the chair of its energy transition fund. The fund, called the HMC Energy Transition Fund, will focus on investing in wind, solar, battery, biofuels, and emerging technologies. Fundraising for the A$2 billion ($1.32bn) vehicle is set to begin in the second half of 2024. HMC Capital manages over A$10 billion across real estate and private equity strategies and recently acquired North American digital investor StratCap for $28.5 million. Gillard expressed her commitment to fighting climate change and believes that the fund will contribute to Australia's transition to zero net carbon by 2050. [Extracted from the article]

Greenberg Traurig Santa Maria has hired Eriprando Guerritore as a partner in its Milan corporate practice. Guerritore specializes in fund formation and investment management and previously worked at Gatti Pavesi Bianchi Ludovici and Paul Hastings. Two associates, Ruggero Maria Zanolini and Claudio Saba, are also joining the firm from GPBL. Zanolini focuses on funds, banking, finance, and insurance regulatory law, while Saba specializes in the structuring and establishment of alternative investment funds. The addition of Guerritore and his team strengthens Greenberg Traurig's position as leading legal advisers in the Italian and European markets. [Extracted from the article]

The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) has invested an additional $300 million in Encino Acquisition Partners (EAP) to support the development of the Utica oil play in Ohio. EAP is a Houston-based investment vehicle founded by CPPIB and Encino Energy, focused on acquiring assets with an established production base in the US. CPPIB initially committed $1 billion to EAP. This investment follows CPPIB's recent investments in Boldyn and Aera Energy. [Extracted from the article]

Nexamp, a community solar developer, has secured a $520 million investment led by Manulife Investment Management to fund its 2GW project pipeline in the US. Previous equity investors Diamond Generating Corporation and Generate Capital also participated in the capital raise. Nexamp aims to collaborate with communities across the nation to build a more sustainable future. The company has a 1.5GW portfolio of generating and in-construction projects and plans to expand its influence in the Midwest. [Extracted from the article]

CenterSquare Investment Management has made an undisclosed equity investment in Aligned Data Centers, a private data center operator focused on US expansion. This investment marks CenterSquare's first foray into the data center industry. Aligned currently has campuses in Chicago, Dallas, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, and Northern Virginia, and is developing additional sites in Oregon, Arizona, Illinois, Ohio, and Virginia. In addition to its US expansion, Aligned has also acquired Odata and has facilities in Brazil, Chile, Colombia, and Mexico. [Extracted from the article]

CBRE Investment Management has hired Rocio Oriol as the senior director of private infrastructure investments in its global indirect private infra team. Based in London, Oriol will be responsible for managing the investment process for new and existing global infrastructure assets and funds, including sourcing, due diligence, and closing. She will also oversee indirect infra investments in funds, co-investments, secondaries, and minority direct investments. Oriol brings valuable experience to CBRE, having previously worked at AltamarCAM Partners, Infracapital, and Climate Change Capital. CBRE's Caledon Global Infrastructure Fund has raised over $1 billion in commitments, and recent activity includes debt financing for portfolio company Norled. [Extracted from the article]

EXA Infrastructure has made an investment in its network connecting Sicily to mainland Italy. The investment includes upgrades to the Janna cable system and the creation of a new submarine route from Palermo to Genoa. The Palermo-Genoa link is expected to be completed in the second quarter of 2024, increasing EXA Infrastructure's offerings to four different routes from Sicily to northern Italy. The upgrades to the Janna cable system will increase its capacity to 400G. This investment is significant due to Sicily's role as a hub for international traffic and EXA's portfolio connecting Europe to North America. EXA has also expanded its digital footprint globally, including in Europe, India, the Middle East, and Croatia. The company added a new transatlantic cable, the Amitie cable, linking Bordeaux to Boston in January 2024. Steve Roberts, senior vice-president of strategic investments and product management at EXA, emphasized the importance of Sicily as a gateway for international traffic into Europe and the company's commitment to investing in network growth and critical infrastructure. [Extracted from the article]

Generate Capital, a US-based sustainable asset manager, has appointed William Sonneborn as its president. Sonneborn previously served as the investment committee chair of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and oversaw $7.5 billion in investments during his time there. Generate Capital has experienced significant growth and has invested over $6 billion in sustainable infrastructure since its establishment in 2014. Sonneborn expressed his excitement about the opportunity to expand Generate's reach and provide sustainable resources. [Extracted from the article]

Swiss energy company Axpo has agreed to sell a 72MW wind portfolio in France to an Article 9 fund advised by EB - Sustainable Investment Management (EB-SIM). The portfolio consists of three wind farms commissioned in 2022 by Axpo subsidiary Volkswind. If the deal is finalized in the first half of 2024, Axpo will continue to provide technical and commercial management services for the portfolio. EB-SIM aims to contribute to EU climate targets and provide environmental and economic returns for its investors. Axpo acquired Volkswind in 2015 and has developed over 90 wind farms in France and Germany. [Extracted from the article]

Pulse Clean Energy has completed the acquisition of 128.8MW of battery energy storage systems (BESS) assets in Staffordshire, UK. These projects are expected to be operational by 2025 and will add to Pulse's existing portfolio of over 500MW of BESS projects. This acquisition is the sixth for Pulse in 2023, with previous transactions including projects in Hampshire, Manchester, Stafford, Aberdeen, and the Pathfinder project. Pulse secured a £175 million senior debt facility in May 2023 to finance these acquisitions. Pulse, formerly known as Green Frog Power, is owned by Investment Management Corporation of Ontario (IMCO). [Extracted from the article]

MetLife Investment Management (MIM) has been awarded the IJInvestor Direct Investor Award in the Americas. Despite concerns about MIM's relative newness to direct investing, the majority of judges recognized the interesting development of the fund in recent years. MIM has been directly investing in countries like Chile, Colombia, and Mexico, and its global presence allows it to leverage relationships across teams to originate direct transactions. MIM played a lead structuring role in various transactions, including investing in an airport in India recovering from the effects of Covid-19. Additionally, MIM provided $120 million as the sole investor to help build a new courthouse in Clackamas County, Oregon, addressing safety concerns and delays in justice for county residents. [Extracted from the article]

Syed Ahmed, the director of infrastructure and project finance at MetLife Investment Management, has been recognized as the IJInvestor Rising Star of the Year in the Americas. He has been praised for his work in deal origination across the US, Canada, and Latin America. Ahmed has played a key role in supporting over $3 billion in transactions, including investments in power, energy, renewables, social projects, public-private partnerships, and transportation. He has also led transactions in the digital infrastructure sector and highly structured high yield and esoteric transactions. Some notable projects he has worked on include coal decommissioning in New Jersey, a floodwater diversion channel in Fargo Moorhead, a district energy system in Denver, a data center in Canada, and toll roads in Colombia and Chile. [Extracted from the article]

Mauricio Gutierrez, the president and CEO of NRG, has stepped down from his position and resigned from the company's board. This change comes after NRG reached an agreement with activist investor Elliot Investment Management to add four independent directors to the company. NRG is now searching for a permanent CEO while Anne Schaumburg takes on the role of lead independent director. Gutierrez had previously attempted to shift NRG's focus to smart home energy management with the acquisition of Vivint, a move that Elliot criticized. The company's future direction is uncertain, but unwinding the Vivint deal is not currently being considered. [Extracted from the article]

Foresight Solar Fund (FSF) has sold a 50% stake in its 99MW Lorca solar portfolio in Spain to a fund advised by EB-Sustainable Investment Management (EB-SIM) for €26.9 million ($29.2m). The sale represents a 21% premium over the holding value of the assets and an exit IRR of 12.1% on the funds invested. The portfolio consists of three farms in the south of the Granada province and has generated 138GWh of electricity between March and September 2023. The proceeds from the sale will be used to pay down FSF's variable rate RCF, and the fund is in discussions to divest more operating assets next year. [Extracted from the article]

BlackRock, a global investment management company, is investing $550 million in the development of STRATOS, a direct air capture (DAC) facility in Texas. The investment is made through a joint venture with Occidental and its subsidiary 1PointFive. STRATOS aims to capture up to 500,000 tonnes of CO2 annually and provide solutions for hard-to-decarbonize industries. BlackRock's chairman, Larry Fink, sees this investment as an opportunity for clients to support climate technology innovation. Occidental recently acquired Carbon Engineering, a company focused on DAC technology commercialization. [Extracted from the article]

KGAL Investment Management and Access Capital Partners have sold the Honkajoki wind farm in Finland to Ardian. The farm, which has been operational since 2013, consists of 9 turbines and was built by Finnish asset manager Taaleritehdas. The transaction is part of Ardian's Clean Energy Evergreen Fund and highlights KGAL's commitment to providing sustainable fund solutions. The sellers were advised by Newsec Infra, Bergmann, and Natural Power. [Extracted from the article]

French construction company Eiffage has acquired an additional 1.76% stake in Getlink for €143.5 million, bringing its ownership to 20.55%. Getlink, formerly known as Groupe Eurotunnel, operates the cross-Channel tunnel between England and France, as well as other commercial brands. Eiffage financed the deal with available cash and plans to increase its stake in the future. The company will continue to support Getlink's strategy and does not plan to make a public offer for the remaining shares. Other major shareholders of Getlink include Edizione and Blackstone-owned Mundys, Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, and Norges Bank Investment Management. [Extracted from the article]

The growing Toronto-based CBRE Investment Management team has been boosted by Nathalie Viens who joined as managing director and head of asset management for the firm's private infrastructure strategies. Viens is responsible for developing and managing CBRE IM's private infrastructure asset management strategy and implementation across the portfolio, including value creation, sustainability initiatives, risk management, reporting and other key activities. [Extracted from the article]

Bernie McNamara, head of client solutions, said: "Aaron has deep knowledge of the infrastructure market and deep experience evaluating and executing infrastructure investments across sectors and geographies. Vale said: "The real assets investment landscape is developing rapidly, and it's precisely at the intersection of real estate and infrastructure where CBRE Investment Management adds value for our global clients. Aaron Vale has been named head of infrastructure client solutions at CBRE Investment Management. [Extracted from the article]

The batteries are located in: Basildon, Essex - 28MW Loudwater, Buckinghamshire - 40MW Both facilities will have a 2-hour duration with Eku Energy aiming for the assets to be fully operational by the end of 2024. Eku Energy has today (20 July 2023) locked in a delivery timeline for 2 battery energy storage system (BESS) facilities in England with plans to commence construction before the end of this year. Eku Energy is jointly owned by a fund managed by Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) and British Columbia Investment Management Corporation (BCI). [Extracted from the article]

Based in Houston, OneRock is a oil and gas private equity firm and the upstream investment arm of Pan Management. OneRock Energy Holdings has reached an agreement to acquire Northwoods Management Company and certain related entities. [Extracted from the article]

MetLife Investment Management has promoted Mansi Patel to managing director and head of infrastructure debt, Americas and APAC, in its New Jersey office. Patel has held positions at PwC in the advising and consulting tax departments before joining MetLife. Patel held several positions within the management company, including vice president of infrastructure and project finance. [Extracted from the article]

Solar specialist NextEnergy Capital has promoted Ross Grier to chief operating officer, in addition to his role as head of UK investments. Grier has been head of UK investments at NextEnergy Capital since May 2018, and took on the additional role of COO as of 8 June 2023. Michael Bonte-Friedheim, CEO and founding partner of NextEnergy Group, said: "In his new role, [Grier] will drive further institutionalisation and improvements across our global investment management platform. [Extracted from the article]

Iberdrola has a 51% stake in the joint venture leaving Norges with the remaining 49%. Spanish developer Iberdrola has today (31 May 2023) firmed up its partnership with Norges Bank Investment Management, locking in terms for the proposed rollout of renewables projects across Spain. [Extracted from the article]

Endeavour Energy supplies electricity to 2.7 million people across Greater Western Sydney, the Blue Mountains, Southern Highlands, the Illawarra and the South Coast of NSW. Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) has acquired an additional stake in New South Wales-based energy distributor Endeavour Energy. [Extracted from the article]

Geoflex, a business involved in hyper-accurate geopositioning, has raised €6 million ($6.37m) in its latest funding round with new partners. Geoflex raises €6m with new investors Geoflex delivers positioning services via satellite and is supported by France's Centre Nationale d'Études Spatiales (CNES). [Extracted from the article]

The newly acquired business has been rebranded as InfraBridge and will operate as a standalone business unit within the DigitalBridge investment management platform. DigitalBridge, through its operating subsidiary, has acquired AMP Capital's global infrastructure equity investment management business in a $316 million deal. [Extracted from the article]

Manulife Investment Management has taken a minority stake in solar, storage and electric vehicle (EV) business, PowerFlex, with a $100 million investment. PowerFlex, which provides integrated solar, storage, EV charging, and microgrid systems to businesses and organizations, is a business affiliate of EDF Renewables North America which still owns a majority stake following Manulife's investment. [Extracted from the article]

German investment management group Patrizia SE has acquired Advantage Investment Partners, a Danish private equity firm with institutional and wholesale distribution channels. Advantage Investment Partners' multi-manager product shelf includes: club deals - global infrastructure equity commingled discretionary fund series - North American PE Launched in 2018, Copenhagen-based Advantage manages $1.2 billion in assets under management. [Extracted from the article]

Morrison & Co has named Pia Lambert as its newest executive director, a move designed to build out the firm's presence in Europe. Lambert has also been the board director for several infrastructure companies across Europe, including: Swedish district heating firm, Stockholm Exergi Dunkerque LNG terminal in France Atlandes, the French toll road This appointment follows a series of strategic hires by Morrison & Co aimed at expanding into the UK, Europe and North America markets. Recent hires include: Charles van Tuyckom - joined in November from Arup as sustainability manager Lauren Beshore - joined in July as an investment director Keith Driver - who since April has worked as director Joshua Tan - who relocated to London as investment manager having worked at the firm in Sydney for almost 3 years Lambert said: "I'm very excited to join Morrison & Co and utilise my expertise to build on its firm foundations and track record at a time when the role of private, long-term capital to deliver essential services is in strong demand.". [Extracted from the article]

Aviva Investors, the London-based global asset management arm of Aviva, has invested in the Welsh 21 SP st sp Century Schools and Colleges Programme (CSCP). Aviva Investors delivers global investment management solutions and services and operates in 14 countries throughout Asia Pacific, Europe and North America - managing £232 billion in assets (accurate on 30 June 2022). The investment will be allocated to the development of a first school under Wales's Mutual Investment Model (MIM), the Mynydd Isa campus in Flintshire - the second confirmed PPP project for the country. [Extracted from the article]

Mike Howard, HEP chairman and CEO said: "As one of the premier capital providers in the industry, AIMCo has been a long-time and trusted partner of HEP. Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo) has acquired a stake in Howard Energy Partners (HEP), bringing its ownership interest to 87% in the midstream company. [Extracted from the article]

Fund manager Antin Infrastructure Partners has appointed infra expert Francisco Cabeza to partner. His work at the bank focused on: private equity renewable energy infrastructure financial restructuring Cabeza handled the financial restructuring and sell-side process of a Spanish renewable asset portfolio, valued at around €850 million ($837.7m). [Extracted from the article]

In the sake of the 30% stake sale, Credit Suisse will "remain an important partner for EIP" through bespoke vehicles serving Swiss pension funds, according to the fund manager. The managing partners of Energy Infrastructure Partners have acquired the 30% stake owned in EIP by Credit Suisse. [Extracted from the article]

CBRE Investment Management has appointed Gioia Torresi and Pav Lamba as directors in the European private direct infrastructure team. Pav will be responsible for making European direct investments, while Gioia will focus on managing the assets of the European direct infrastructure portfolio as well as on sustainability and governance. Pav rejoins the infrastructure investment team and had left CBRE IM, Toronto, to pursue an MBA. [Extracted from the article]

Pierfront Capital Fund Management at the end of last week (30 September 2022) hit final close on Keppel-Pierfront Private Credit Fund with a total investable capital of $700 million. Singapore-based Pierfront Capital offers bespoke private credit solutions across real asset sectors and said investment commitments of $450 million account for $700 million of the total investable capital. Pierfront's first fund - Pierfront Capital Mezzanine Fund - has a similar strategy to the new vehicle and had committed $400 million across 15 investments, achieving close to mid-teens gross internal rate of return as of September 2022. [Extracted from the article]

John Leggate, chair of GRID, said: "We are delighted to welcome Isabel Liu to the board as a nonexecutive director. London-listed vehicle Gresham House Energy Storage Fund (GRID) has appointed Isabel Liu as an independent non-executive director. [Extracted from the article]

Macquarie Asset Management (MAM) has appointed Irina Luckey as a managing director to support its infrastructure secondaries business across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Luckey will operate out of London and support MAM in the execution of a robust pipeline of investment opportunities sourced through its long-standing relationships with infrastructure managers and investors. [Extracted from the article]

Generation Investment Management's London-based net-zero platform Just Climate has appointed Andy Wiley as a new managing director of capital markets and project finance. Just Climate was launched by Generation Investment Management last October (2021) as a sustainability-led business aimed at hard-to-abate sectors and geographies. [Extracted from the article]

After this, Taylor served as investment manager at Legal and General Investment Management, before taking on a directorial role at Augusta & Co. EIG is headquartered in Washington D.C. and has committed $41.5 million to more than 385 energy projects across 38 countries. EIG Global Energy Partners has appointed Nicole Taylor as a new vice president in the European power and renewables space. [Extracted from the article]

Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) has promoted Eduardo Farhat to head the firm's activities in Brazil. Farhat joined CDPQ in 2019 as a managing director for infrastructure in Latin America where he has managed a portfolio worth $4.8 billion and is responsible for CDPQ's investment strategy in the infrastructure sector in the region. [Extracted from the article]

Since 2021, he has been leading and growing the digital infrastructure sector team activities In this capacity, he is a member of the MT Infra investment committee and sits on the boards of several portfolio companies in the energy and utilities, and digital infrastructure sector in Europe and the US Before joining the PGGM investment management team, he has among others been involved in debt advisory and investment banking across Benelux and in London for a Dutch investment bank He was head of renewables at NIBC Bank in London for 4 years, and was also associate director of transport and energy there The current size of the open end PGGM Infra fund is 13.6 billion Dennis van Alphen has been nominated head of infrastructure at PGGM in the Netherlands, with his new role scheduled to begin this month (August 2022 Van Alphen succeeds Irina Frolova who has been leading the infra team on an interim basis since early this year He will be responsible for a 45-strong dedicated infra team and will become part of PGGM investment management team He joined PGGM Infrastructure in 2011 from London and has since then been responsible for the crosssectoral origination and investments strategy. [Extracted from the article]

Arcus Infrastructure Partners has promoted Jenni Chan and John Shea to its partnership this month (July). Amsterdam-based Shea ( I below i ) joined Arcus in 2011 and is a senior member of the Arcus digital origination team. [Extracted from the article]