UUP chair to back fund

The chairman of the Ulster Unionist Party is backing a new €220 million private equity fund that will invest in renewable energy projects on both sides of the Border.

David Campbell, a former senior adviser to David Trimble, has joined with not-for-profit company Northern Ireland Energy Holdings to launch the Irish Renewable and Sustainable Energy Fund, which will invest in "eco-friendly" schemes over the next five years.

He and the other promoters will market the fund to a mixture of investors, including pension funds, banks, high-net-worth individuals and family trusts. They envisage a typical investment of £5-£10 million (€7.2-€14 million).

Projects of particular interest to the fund will include joint ventures with the public sector that are designed to meet the requirements of EU waste directives. "Virtually every local council throughout the island has fairly rigid targets to meet," said Mr Campbell yesterday.

The fund, which will operate from offices in Belfast and Dublin, will also concentrate on private sector initiatives aimed at reducing reliance on fossil fuels.

Mr Campbell is involved in the fund through Northern Renewables, a Belfast-based renewable energy specialist, where he is chairman. The company operates a number of joint ventures in the sector, including an initiative with Viridian.

Northern Ireland Energy Holdings owns energy infrastructure including the Moyle interconnector. The firm has been given permission by the Northern Ireland energy regulator to invest an initial £10 million in the fund.

Mr Campbell said yesterday that he will decide on his firm's financial commitment after other potential investors have come on board. A roadshow organised by Canadian bank, RBC Capital Markets, will be scheduled in June, with funds to have closed by the end of July.

In return for supplying equity to projects, the fund will typically take a stake of about 30 per cent in target ventures. Individual investments will be large, with the average energy-from-waste plant costing at least €100 million. A biofuel facility could cost up to €20 million, according to Mr Campbell.

While the fund will not become involved in managing the companies it chooses as investments, Campbell said it will keep "a fairly close eye" on them.