Exclusive: Impact Investment eyes second solar fund

Ten days after reaching a A$100 million ($76.2 million; €67.5 million) first and final close on its Solar Income Fund, Impact Investment Group (IIG), a Melbourne-based fund manager, is keen to strike the iron while it's hot.

In an interview with Infrastructure Investor, chief executive Chris Lock said that his team is already mulling a successor structure, which like the firm maiden's solar income fund would seek commitments from Australian high-net-worth individuals, family offices and small super funds.

“The Solar Income Fund has received huge interest from investors and was over-subscribed. On the back of this success, we are keen to launch another vehicle next year.”

The IIG Solar Income Fund, officially launched last month, aims to acquire A$100 million worth of operating solar projects secured with long-term offtake contracts. The firm has exclusive rights to buy three seed assets of about A$60 million in varying stages of construction. 

“The fund plans to deploy the remaining A$40 million in the next 12 to 18 months,” said Lock, adding that the fund is not limited to investing in commercial and utility-scale solar projects ranging in size from 1MW upwards. 

He argued that solar assets with offtake contracts are available in multiple shapes and sizes across Australia's fast-growing renewables market. The ability to generate predictable cash flows for several decades had made the assets attractive to investors, he said.   

Owned by Lock and the family office of impact entrepreneurs Daniel Almagor and Berry Liberman, IIG has over A$400 million in funds under management. 

Last year, the firm established a renewables infrastructure team led by Lane Crockett, the former executive general manager of Melbourne-based Pacific Hydro, in response to what it saw as a growing stream of clean energy opportunities Down Under. In addition to renewables, the firm also invests in commercial buildings and hospital facilities.