Natixis’ Mirova launches 6th energy infrastructure strategy

Mirova, an affiliate of Natixis Investment Managers dedicated to sustainable finance, has launched its sixth strategy dedicated to energy transition infrastructure aimed at both investment from Australian superannuation funds and institutional investors and opportunities to invest in clean energy in Australia.

The new strategy, Mirova Energy Transition 6 (MET6), will aim to raise up to €2 billion and will replace Mirova Energy Transition 5 (MET5), which was launched in February 2021 and exceeded its target by raising €1.6 billion in less than 18 months, the firm said.

MET6 will offer financing for resilient infrastructure that is essential for the decarbonisation of energy production and consumption and will aim to finance proven technologies, such as onshore and offshore wind power, photovoltaics, hydropower, storage and energy efficiency, while supporting the development of low-carbon electric mobility and hydrogen.

According to Mirova, its newest strategy will also seek to identify project promoters and provide them with the financial resources to support their development phase, throughout the projects’ entire life cycles.

The fund’s core deployment target remains in Europe, with part of the investments possibly made in other OECD (the Organisation for Economic and Co-operation and Development) member countries, but the fund will also look to duplicate its proven models and extend the partnerships with European developers in new regions, such as Asia.

At the moment, Mirova’s Energy Transition Infrastructure team works on OECD funds and employs almost 30 people while managing €3.5 billion and has financed over 1,000 projects across 48 European countries, Asia and Africa.

The team will be supported by Mirova’s Singapore office in both its fundraising and deployment.

Mirova has said that it remains committed to contributing to the financing of a more sustainable economy and, with its new strategy, it is responding to the challenges of European energy sovereignty.

“As an international leader and pioneer of sustainable finance Mirova has both the experience and expertise to bring the very best ESG investment opportunities to Australian super funds and institutional investors. This is the 6^th iteration of its energy transition infrastructure fund, so it is building on a long and successful track record of delivering critical finance for energy transition projects, while also providing attractive returns for investors,” Natixis’ country head, Australia and New Zealand, Louise Watson, said.

“I know that many super funds, and their members, care deeply about global warming and want to invest in the energy transition, but can’t always find investments that meet their ESG, risk and return criteria. For funds that are in this position, this opportunity is well worth looking at.”