2022年10月21日

在新的聯邦支出立法的部分推動下，投資者和項目開發商正準備在未來幾個月和幾年內向可持續基礎設施注入大量資金。為了捕捉和引導這些資金的流向，加拿大一家大型養老基金和一家專注於可持續發展的領先私募股權公司正在結成夥伴關係，幫助對方找到好的投資。Spring Lane Capital和OMERS Infrastructure之間的交易恰逢聯邦通貨膨脹降低法案通過幾周後。Spring Lane聯合創始人兼合夥人羅布•戴(Rob Day)表示，這應該有助於將更多資金引向這些項目。戴說，由於新聯邦立法機構的大力推動，項目開發商和企業家“急於比以前更快地行動”。兩家公司在一份聲明中表示，這一合作關係於上月底宣布，旨在“在專注於可持續發展解決方案的廣泛分布式基礎設施領域，發現並尋求增長型業務的投資機會”。特別感興趣的行業包括食品、水、能源、運輸和廢物處理。戴告訴CleantechIQ:“這是一個共同探索和執行共同投資的夥伴關係，雙方將“在每筆交易中保持自己的投資決策。”但他們並不是單打獨鬥:“我們已經有了正式的流程，可以彼此分享機會，並確定哪些機會可以共同努力。”雙方都沒有透露他們希望通過合作投資多少。 No deals have been made so far, but the two sides are “already actively collaborating around some early opportunities,” Day says. The two will likely target companies seeking $50 million or more in financing. He adds that Spring Lane sees the “EV, microgrid, and waste-to-value sectors right now as being particularly active with some emerging strong developer teams.” OMERS Infrastructure is a unit of the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System, and is a good fit for its new private equity partner. Spring Lane “brings a wealth of expertise in identifying, investing in, and successfully scaling growth infrastructure companies of the future,” says Gisele Everett, senior managing director and head of Americas at the infrastructure company. “OMERS Infrastructure brings a strong track record of partnering with, supporting, and creating value in businesses across a broad range of infrastructure sectors.” Spring Lane has long been active in providing financing and support to private companies in various sustainability fields, and has tended to focus on companies that are “underserved by traditional financial markets,” says managing partner Christian Zabbal. By working with OMERS Infrastructure, Spring Lane can “offer a broader set of capital solutions,” he adds. The firm manages $400 million overall, having just held, in August, a third close of about $50 million for its second fund. That fund now has $250 million in assets, and the firm intends to raise $150 million more. The firm also hired four people over the summer, including two principals – further proof of the strong growth in the sustainable infrastructure space. Sustainable infrastructure investment opportunities seem poised to take off. The Inflation Reduction Act officially includes about $374 billion worth of spending on climate change-related projects over the next 10 years. But the real number is actually much higher, according to a Credit Suisse report cited by the Atlantic . Because of the IRA’s use of tax credits, the total spending is likely to be more than double the ‘official’ figure – more like $800 billion, per Credit Suisse. And when you factor in how federal spending often catalyzes further private investments, Credit Suisse estimates the legislation will lead to $1.7 trillion in total climate spending over the next decade. The momentum that’s building in the distributed sustainable infrastructure space is in fact underscored by OMERS Infrastructure boosting its presence. The investor had been doing so previously – it says it currently has 31 portfolio companies and C$32 billion ($23.2 billion) in assets across a range of investments – but is likely now to increase that even further, though a spokesman declines to say how much OMERS may target through this new partnership. It’s likely to be significant, though, and that’s a clear vote of confidence for the space. “When we spun our team out of a family office and started Spring Lane Capital a few years back, it was because we knew that these solutions would only scale with institutional capital, so it’s really encouraging to see it happening,” Day said in a LinkedIn post . He added: “It just feels like such a vital time in the market for everyone, the beginning of a lot more market activity at ever faster pace and ever bigger aspirations.