The Pensions Infrastructure Platform (PIP) Multi-Strategy Infrastructure fund has made its first equity investment, it announced today.
The fund has acquired a portfolio of 31 individual wind turbines from Golden Square Energy, a renewables business and joint venture partnership between infrastructure investors, Ingenious Infrastructure and AGR.
The sites are diversified across the UK and all of the turbines are operational and accredited under the UK’s feed-in-tariff (FiT) regime.
PIP said the predictable FiT revenues, combined with guaranteed availability under long-term operation and maintenance (O&M) contracts, will provide investors with 20 years of inflation-linked cashflows to help them meet their long-term pension obligations.
PIP chief executive Mike Weston (pictured) said: “This first equity investment for the PIP Multi-Strategy Infrastructure Fund marks another landmark in the development of PIP. We are pleased to have been able to work with the sellers, Golden Square Energy, as well as our advisor B Capital Partners, on this proprietary transaction, which provides our pension scheme investors with the secured, long-term, inflation-linked cashflows they are seeking to support their accrued pension payment obligations.”
Golden Square Energy investment director, Baiju Devani, said: “Golden Square Energy is delighted to have worked with PIP to complete this transaction. Ingenious Infrastructure’s joint venture with AGR was established with the objective of developing and operating high quality renewables projects which bring value to the UK economy and our investors. Achieving endorsement from a major institutional investor such as PIP is testament to the quality of the portfolio and our commercial relationships.”
B Capital Partners founding partner, Barbara Weber, added: “We are excited about having been able to work with PIP on this truly proprietary opportunity. PIP’s direct equity investment in this low-risk portfolio demonstrates the attractiveness to institutional investors of controlling key parameters such as holding period, leverage and contractual structures which strongly influence the risk-return level of any given investment.”
