Azevedo family subsidiary sells solar energy portfolio to British fund
Capwatt, a company based in Maia (Porto) and owned by Prismore Capital (formerly Sonae Capital Industrials), has sold 68 megawatts in Portugal and Spain to a fund managed by the British company SDCL.
Capwatt, owned by the Azevedo family, has sold a portfolio of solar energy projects to a fund managed by the British company Sustainable Development Capital LLP (SDCL). The Maia-based company, which belongs to Prismore Capital (formerly Sonae Capital Industrials), sold 68 megawatts (MW) in Portugal and Spain to the Global Energy Transition Fund (GETF).
The solar portfolio is behind-the-meter – the energy generated or stored can be used internally – and includes assets already in operation, under construction and under development in the Iberian Peninsula, for the manufacturing, agri-food, packaging and construction materials sectors.
This is GETF’s first investment in the Iberian solar market and aims to expand its commercial and industrial solar energy platform. The investment is expected to exceed €100 million over the next year.
Founded in 2008, Capwatt operates in Portugal, Mexico, Spain, Italy and Poland, managing a range of solar, wind, energy storage, cogeneration, biomethane and green methanol projects. Under this agreement, despite being a sale, the renewable energy specialist will retain “a strategic role” as asset manager.
For Prismore Capital CEO Miguel Gil Mata, the partnership is the basis for a long-term agreement and represents “a strategic milestone in Capwatt’s growth path, reinforcing its position as one of the leading developers of sustainable energy solutions in the Iberian Peninsula”.
“SDCL’s investment demonstrates strong confidence in the quality and long-term value of its projects, as well as in Capwatt’s ability to develop and manage high-performance assets that drive the energy transition”, argues the manager, who heads the company that owns the industrial assets of the former Sonae Capital and Sonae Indústria.
SDCL founder and CEO Jonathan Maxwell believes the purchase will give the GETF fund “exposure to one of Europe’s key energy transition markets”. “The size of the portfolio demonstrates the strong opportunities for energy efficiency solutions in the commercial and industrial sectors in southern Europe, and we look forward to expanding our platform in the region”, adds the investor.
GETF raised around €650 million in October 2023 and has already committed more than 75% of this amount to energy infrastructure projects and companies, in addition to benefiting from European Union support under the InvestEU fund.
In the past, in 2022, SDCL – through the Energy Efficiency Income Trust (SEEIT) – did business with Capwatt by investing €22 million to purchase an 80% stake in a biomass project in Mangualde, in the district of Viseu.
