Private Markets

Building solutions for a sustainable economy

Impax is one of the longest established private markets managers in the large and rapidly growing renewable energy sector. The firm manages three new energy funds that follow an industrially-focused value-add strategy, investing in renewable power generation and related assets.

History of the New Energy Strategy

  • 2005
    First close of New Energy Fund (“NEF”) I
  • 2006
    Final close of NEF I at €125m
    First development investment: 2% stake in >1GW wind pipeline
  • 2008
    First construction projects: 12MW PV solar investments in Spain
  • 2010
    First close of NEF II
  • 2011
    Final close of NEF II at €330m
    First platform acquisition: Epuron France & Germany for wind projects
  • 2016
    First close of NEF III
    All NEF II capital returned to investors
  • 2017
    NEF I fully exited
  • 2018
    Final close of NEF III at €357m
    First small-hydro investment: Norsk Omipower JV in Norway
  • 2018
    Publication of NEF impact metrics

The funds:

  • Impax New Energy Investors (NEF I) is a €125 million fund which reached final close in August 2006. NEF I made onshore wind and PV solar investments across Europe and invested in its first construction projects in 2008.
  • Impax New Energy Investors II (NEF II) built upon the activities of NEF I with a continued focus on European renewable energy investments. NEF II, which reached final close in August 2011 with €330 million of capital commitments, was deployed across a diversified investment portfolio spanning seven European countries. In 2011, NEF II made its first platform acquisition, acquiring development teams and pipelines in France and Germany. By 2016 the Fund had returned all of the capital back to investors and today the Fund is nearly fully exited, having realised multiple successful exits.
  • Impax New Energy Investors III (NEF III) continues the successful strategy of NEF II, with an increased focus on development partnerships in key European countries. NEF III, which reached final close in May 2018 with €357 million of capital commitments, has currently made eight investments in five European countries, including a small-hydro platform in Norway.
  • Our investor base is comprised of a geographically diverse mix of leading institutional investors including pension funds, insurance companies, asset managers, foundations and family offices.

The sectors:

  • As a dedicated European renewable energy specialist, the funds invest across European countries and across commercially proven technologies (principally in onshore wind, solar PV and small-hydro). The team will selectively look at opportunities in related sectors such as renewables enabling infrastructure and demand-side opportunities.
  • The funds invest into both single assets as well as development teams with pipelines of projects. We invest in projects and portfolios at various stages of development though we find the most value in entering during late-stage development and taking projects through construction, employing a buy-build-sell approach.
  • Our team has deep sector experience stretching back to the 1980s and has successfully executed transactions across many European countries.

The strategy:

Impax takes a value-add approach to investing seeking to deliver superior risk-adjusted returns to investors. We focus on risk management and certain downside protections through careful deal structuring, contracting and operational management. We also seek to take advantage of what we see as an excellent market opportunity with our industrially-focused track record and expertise.

Market opportunity

  • Attractive market created by ambitious EU renewable energy targets, a global consensus around the Paris Agreement, the widespread ageing and phasing out of existing power plants and nuclear and the increasing importance of lessening the reliance on energy imports.
  • Strong regulatory support with feed-in tariff revenues in the long-term. This is complimented by the growing subsidy-free market as renewable energy technologies continue to decline in cost and improve in efficiency, enabling renewable energy projects to achieve grid parity across many European countries.
  • A fragmented market which, we believe, is ready for consolidation as large financial investors and utility power generation companies look to buy scaled operational renewable energy portfolios.

Our industrial approach to adding value

  • Over 15 years as a dedicated European renewable energy specialist with a proven track record in developing and constructing renewable energy assets.
  • Experienced multilingual team with broad networks and access to strong proprietary deal flow.
  • In-house specialists focused on technical management, commercial management and debt finance.
  • A focus on risk management and certain downside protections through careful deal structuring, contracting and operational management.
  • Returns driven by creation of intrinsic asset quality, not excessive financial leverage.

The Team

Daniel von Preyss

Head of PE/Infrastructure, Executive Director

Daniel joined Impax in 2009 and heads Impax’s Private Equity/Infrastructure business. Daniel is a member of the investment committees for each of the New Energy Funds.

Daniel has significant business and senior transactional experience with blue chip companies within the energy and utility sectors. Prior to joining Impax he was responsible for Babcock & Brown’s Northern European infrastructure investment activities. Prior to this, Daniel was Director in the European Energy and Utilities team at Deutsche Bank with a strong focus on M&A activity in Europe and a member of Citigroup’s Utilities team.

Daniel holds an MBA from Cologne University (Germany) and studied International Business for one year under a scholarship at Sophia University in Japan.

Carsten Johansen

Head of Private Equity/Infrastructure Transaction Team

Carsten uses his investment and corporate finance experience to lead the origination and negotiation of new deals for Impax Investment Management.

Prior to joining Impax in 2019, Carsten spent more than 15 years at GE Energy Financial Services, entering its graduate programme in 2000 and becoming an Executive Director with responsibility for originating, executing and managing investments across the energy sector. He then spent a year at Global Water Development Partners, established by Blackstone, before returning to GE to oversee energy investments in Latin America and the EMEA region.

He has a masters in Accounting and Finance from The London School of Economics, a bachelor’s degree in Business Economics and International Business from London Metropolitan University, and a bachelor’s degree in International Business from Copenhagen Business School.

Rhiann Gray

Head of Asset Management & Sustainability (PE/Infrastructure)

Rhiann works in the asset management team in the Private Equity/Infrastructure division, which invests in the build out of renewable energy projects. She is also chair of the ESG Sub-Committee for the PE/Infrastructure team.

Prior to joining Impax in August 2009, Rhiann was financial controller at Platina Partners for just over two years. Before this, she worked for three years as an audit senior at MacIntyre Hudson, where she began her accounting career. She has worked in the investment, renewables and private equity space since 2007.

Rhiann graduated from Bournemouth University with a first-class honours degree in Business. She also holds a CFA-issued certificate in ESG Investing.

Scroll to top
User Agent: CCBot/2.0 (https://commoncrawl.org/faq/)