Fundraising

HitecVision closes Fund IV on $300m

The Stavanger, Norway-based private equity firm has already invested approximately 20 percent of its fourth vehicle, which focuses on growth capital and buyout investments in the oil and gas sector in Europe and the US.

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Norwegian energy-focused independent private equity firm HitecVision Private Equity has held a second and final closing on its fourth fund, having passed its original target in a first close earlier this year.
 
HitecVision Private Equity IV has closed with $300 million (€239 million) of commitments from Nordic investors. The vehicle held a first closing on $283 million in January, significantly above its original target of $200 million.
 
Limited partners in Fund IV’s investor base included HitecVision itself, Argentum Fondsinvesteringer, Nordea, Vital, Tredje AP-Fonden (AP3), Gjensidige, Storebrand, KLP Forsikring and several family offices. HitecVision said that the bulk of the capital committed came from investors in its previous fund, the vintage 2003 $110 million Energivekst.
 
So far, approximately 20 percent of Fund IV has been invested in two transactions. In June, HitecVision and fellow Norwegian venture capital firm Four Seasons Venture made a growth capital investment in Vector International, a Norway and Wales-based provider of pipe connectors to the oil, gas and petrochemical industries. HitecVision and Four Seasons will invest equally up to NOK230 million (€29 million; $37 million) over the next two years.
 
HitecVison also announced today that it has acquired 94.6 percent of the shares of Oslo Stock Exchange-listed Technor, a Norwegian electrical engineering business, for NOK560 million (€71 million; $90 million).
 
As with its predecessor, Fund IV will make make buyout and growth capital investments within the oil and gas sector in Europe and the US, typically investing between $15 million and $50 million.