AFRICA – The Swiss Investment Fund for Emerging Markets (SIFEM) has invested US$10 million in Metier Sustainable Capital Fund II.
The Fund will be focused on climate mitigation and adaptation through investments in renewable energy generation as well as in resource efficiency.
It will help expand access to affordable, reliable, and clean energy services, and enhance grid-tied installed renewable energy capacity in Africa, which can incite local companies to switch to renewable energy and thereby avoiding fossil fuel consumption.
Through investments in resource efficiency, the Fund may also contribute to waste management, materials recycling, waste to energy, water treatment and limiting pollution.
At least 35% of commitments are expected to be in Least Developed Countries (LDCs), and geographically, the Fund is expected to allocate 40% to Southern Africa, 30% to Eastern Africa, and 30% to Western Africa.
SIFEM’s regional partner in this investment, Metier Sustainable Capital Private Equity International, is a leading private equity firm in Africa with three decades of experience. The overall size of the Fund is USD 156 million.
Metier Sustainable Capital Fund II is a fund focusing on renewable energy generation as well as energy and resource efficiency investments in Sub Saharan Africa. Norfund is a limited partner in the Fund.
Metier Sustainable Capital II will invest growth capital in distributed energy and resource efficiency businesses and provide development financing for small scale utility renewable projects which will reduce greenhouse gas emissions, facilitate economic growth and job creation and contribute to improvements in living standards.
Metier will also play a role in catalysing the overall distributed energy and resource efficiency market in Africa.
MSC II is the tenth capital pool for the Metier team, which has worked together for over three decades and collectively has a track record of over 100 strong performance deals.
Metier’s successful predecessor Sustainable Capital Fund of 2012/13 invested in eight portfolio companies, the most recent of which is a water and wastewater treatment business, that builds and operates treatment plants with a recent strategy of taking ownership in water-efficient infrastructure.
