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- £733 million raised, significantly above the initial £500 million target.
- Portfolio capacity reaches 731MW, moving towards 1GW target.
- Accelerates UK’s Clean Power 2030 goals by rapidly expanding solar capacity.
NextEnergy Capital’s NextPower UK ESG (NPUK), the largest dedicated private fund for new-build solar in the UK, has successfully closed fundraising at £733 million—almost 50% above its original target.
NPUK aims to significantly enhance the UK’s energy security and reduce carbon emissions through new-build, utility-scale solar projects. The fund has already invested over 70% of committed capital, acquiring its fifteenth asset, bringing total portfolio capacity to 731MW.
“NextPower UK has been another success story for NextEnergy Capital and the wider NextEnergy Group in the backdrop of a difficult global fundraising environment,” said Michael Bonte-Friedheim, CEO of NextEnergy Group. “We raised £733 million and reached a final close nearly 50% higher than the Fund’s initial target of £500 million.”
The fund’s cornerstone investor, the National Wealth Fund, injected £250 million, leveraging private capital for renewables.
Stuart Nivison, Head of Portfolio Management at the National Wealth Fund, noted, “Our cornerstone investment in NextPower UK was our first deal to leverage this scale of additional independent investment… Catalytic capital deployed by the National Wealth Fund going forward can help mobilise institutional investment into clean energy projects across the UK.”
NPUK is rapidly progressing towards achieving over 400MW of operational capacity within this year alone and expects to exceed 1GW once fully deployed. Currently, 249MW are operational, including Llanwern, the UK’s largest active solar farm.
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Classified as an Article 9 Fund under the EU SFDR, NPUK delivers measurable ESG impacts, including biodiversity enhancements and robust transparency reporting. When fully operational, it will supply clean energy equivalent to powering approximately 371,756 households annually, offsetting an estimated 887,003 barrels of oil per year.
Nadeem Hussain, Co-CIO at LGPS Central, emphasized, “We are committed to investing in high-quality infrastructure opportunities that align with both financial objectives and sustainability principles… NextPower UK offers long-term, stable returns from utility-scale solar farms while driving meaningful environmental impact.”
NextEnergy Capital is set to launch a follow-on fund, NextEnergy UK II, this summer, to continue capturing the growth in UK solar opportunities.
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