Clean energy fund manager Glennmont Partners has announced plans to develop 3GW of clean energy in Europe by 2026, as it launched a new independent power producer called Verdian.
The London-based clean energy investor, which was acquired by investment giant Nuveen in 2021, officially launched Verdian yesterday, noting that the independent developer would become a key pillar in its renewable energy portfolio.
Verdian will focus on designing, building and operating solar PV and wind power plants that incorporate energy storage and “hybridisation technologies”, as well as distributed generation projects, according to the update.
Verdian is aiming to focus its work in Italy and Spain, but it would also look to have a presence in other European countries, Glennmont said. The first solar projects planned in its two main target markets are on track to be operational by the end of 2025, with construction set to start next year, it said.
Glennmont said Verdian already had 800MW of projects in its pipeline, including in-house developments and projects acquired at the “ready-to-build” phase.
“Glennmont are pleased to launch Verdian – a venture that not only demonstrates the enduring appetite for renewables investment in Europe, but also represents a future-proofed approach to clean energy generation,” said Scott Lawrence, Glennmont Partners co-founder and board member of Verdian. “The combination of established renewables technologies with hybridisation and storage capacity in particular, is a recognition of the importance of increasing control over intermittency and grid fluctuations, and provides a further means of ensuring safe investment with potential for consistent returns.”
The investor said the new outfit would be headquartered in Barcelona, and form a “key part” of its Clean Energy Fund IV portfolio of investments.
Jordi Francesch, head of asset management and chief risk officer at Glennmont, said the firm would work collaboratively with local communities in areas where projects were planned.
“Through the expertise we have built up over the last few years and by leveraging the latest technologies to increase efficiency in our value chain, we are poised to meet all the demand we have already identified in key markets such as Italy and Spain,” he said. “Furthermore, we will do so through a completely collaborative approach with the communities in which Verdian will operate, putting our utmost effort into making a decisive contribution to local socio-economic development and the improvement of global environmental sustainability”.
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