Norway's Aker-backed infrastructure fund eyes 1 bln euros launch in 2025

Aker ASA

29/10/2024 14:30

By Nora Buli
       OSLO, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Norwegian energy transition
investment fund Industry Capital Partners (ICP), backed by
industrial group Aker ASA  AKER.OL , plans to launch an
inaugural 1 billion euros ($1.08 billion) fund next year, the
head of its infrastructure unit said on Tuesday.    
    "What we are working on at Industry Capital Partners are
energy projects onshore," Christian Rynning-Toennesen, head of
ICP Infrastructure said on the sidelines of an offshore wind
conference in Oslo.
    The projects were mostly for onshore wind, as well as
investments in data centres and power grid technology, and
currently focused in Norway and Sweden, he added.    
"Our aim is to establish that fund in the first half of next
year, and then we must have a combination of real investments
and investors who go into the fund," said Rynning-Toennesen, who
was previously CEO of Norwegian power producer Statkraft. 
    The aim is to raise 750 million euros, and at most 1 billion
euros, to be spread out across a maximum of six projects, he
added.
    ICP is currently presenting its plans to potential investors
and seeing "considerable interest" from both industrial and
purely financial players such as pension funds, the CEO said.
    In addition, the company has entered a partnership with
United Arab Emirates' renewable energy company Masdar on energy
projects.
    "Some of the investments we are looking at are larger than
what we want to take on our own books, and then we can go and
invest together with Masdar," Rynning-Toennesen specified.
    The first fund would not invest into offshore wind, he
added. 
    "We see this as too much risk for such a fund."
     
    ($1 = 0.9276 euros)

(Reporting by Nora Buli)
((mailto:Nora.Buli@thomsonreuters.com; (+47) 21 04 05 56;
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