Infrastructure investment company Quercus Assets Selection will launch two new renewable energy infrastructure funds that will be focussed on wind and solar projects.
The funds will bring the total number of funds in its portfolio to five. The launch of the two new funds will complement the recently launched Quercus European Renewables fund to maximize the portfolio’s risk/return profile through a meticulous strategy of diversification.
Quercus plans to raise a minimum combined target of €500 million (US$546 million) across the three funds, which is to be invested in connected wind and solar plants in Italy, as well as in other renewable technologies throughout Europe.
More specifically, the Quercus Italian PV fund has a fundraising target of €150 million and is focused geographically on Italy with the aim of creating a high quality portfolio of photovoltaic plants. The Quercus Italian Wind fund has a fundraising target of €150 million and will invest in existing Italian wind plants over the next two years to build a portfolio generating 300 megawatts.
The Quercus European Renewables fund invests in multi-technology assets with a minimum target of €200 million to be invested in production facilities of various renewable energy assets across Europe. The funds will have a long-term investment horizon of a minimum of 10 years and a targeted Internal Rate of Return per annum of 8-10%, rising to 9-11% in the case of Quercus Italian Wind fund.
“The three new Quercus funds facilitate participation in an attractive renewable energy marketplace that continues to offer significant investment opportunities,” the company said in statement. “It is estimated that the proportion of global electricity generated from renewable sources will double in the next 25 years, reaching 46% of all electricity produced worldwide in 2040 compared to 23% today.”
