Armstrong commits $40m to Mekong region wind, solar projects
Southeast Asia-focused cleantech investor Armstrong Asset Management will commit up to US$40 million in equity to support the construction of wind and solar projects in the Mekong region.
The PE firm is partnering with Singapore-based The Blue Circle, a vertically integrated renewable energy developer operating in Vietnam, Thailand and Cambodia, with a 600-megawatt pipeline of projects under evaluation or negotiation. Armstrong will also take a minority stake in Blue Circle.
Andrew Affleck, managing partner at Armstrong, highlighted Blue Circle CEO Olivier Duguet's track record of working with private equity investors in developing a renewable energy portfolio in Europe. This included 115 MW of operational and 850 MW of development projects.
"With Armstrong's local experience and established regional network, we aim to replicate that success here in Southeast Asia together with The Blue Circle," Affleck said in a statement.
Additional support will come from the Seed Capital Assistance Facility (SCAF), an initiative backed by the UN Environment Program, Asian Development Bank and Global Environment Facility that helps investment funds provide start-up funding to clean energy projects.
Armstrong is one of three SCAF partners in Asia; the others are the Berkeley Energy Renewable Energy Asia Fund and Aloe Private Equity. SCAF expects to support 4-5 early-stage projects or ventures, providing $1 in support for every $5 invested by Armstrong.
The private equity firm closed its debut clean energy fund last November at $164 million, having won commitments from a string of European development finance institutions as well as the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and fund-of-funds Unigestion.
Armstrong has made two previous investments, committing up to US$30 million to Annex Power for solar and biogas projects in Thailand, Indonesia and the Philippines, and taking an equity stake in Symbior Elements, which is developing a portfolio of solar assets in Thailand. It has also entered into a co-investment arrangement with Mandiri Investment Management, targeting projects in Indonesia.
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