Cubico was launched in 2015 by Santander and the Canadian funds PSP Investment and Ontario Teachers Pension Fund to invest in renewables.
Squared Capital, the global leader in infrastructure investment management, has reached an agreement to sell T-Solar for 1.5 billion euros to Cubico Sustainable Investments, a renewables group owned by Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan and PSP Investments.
This is one of the most eagerly awaited operations in the Spanish energy sector. The process of selling T-Solar, a former subsidiary of Isolux, began some time ago. Now, it is materializing in the midst of the vortex of renewable energy operations in Spain. As EXPANSIÓN announced yesterday, so far this year there have been transactions worth 12 billion euros.
I Squared Capital bought T-Solar four years ago. After making the group grow, two years ago it began to explore options. T-Solar continues to be one of the Spanish and European leaders in renewables, specifically in photovoltaic. It has an installed and regulated capacity of 274 megawatts (MW) in Spain and Italy, with growth projects totalling a portfolio of 1,400 megawatts.
With I Squared Capital, T-Solar went from an installed capacity of 168 MW in Europe to 274 MW. It also closed one of the largest financing deals in the Spanish renewables market with the issue of a historic green bond, valued at ?568 million.
Speaking to EXPANSIÓN, Mohamed El Gazzar, partner of I Squared Capital in London, explained that «to date, we have invested in some 600 megawatts of renewable assets, and we have some 3,000 megawatts in the pipeline divided between onshore and offshore wind, solar and storage projects». Cubico, born from Santander, is the renewable investment vehicle of the Canadian PSP Investment and Ontario Teachers Pension Fund. The company was launched in 2015 by Santander and the two Canadian funds. Since then it has acquired a leading role in the corporate renewables movement around the world.
I Squared Capital is an independent investment fund specializing in energy and infrastructure. It is based in Miami, USA. In addition to that city, it has offices in Hong Kong, London, New Delhi, New York and Singapore. The company has ?19.3 billion in assets under management, with a portfolio of 26 investee companies.
As Mohamed El Gazzar explained to this newspaper, the departure of T-Solar’s capital does not mean that it has abandoned the Spanish market. «We will continue to look for opportunities,» he said. In fact, I Square has already made another investment. Last summer, together with the Rubis group, it announced the purchase of Tepsa, a hydrocarbon storage company.
Advisors to the Cubico deal include Goldman Sachs and Linklaters.
Source: Expansión.
