APG and OMERS Infrastructure have today announced the signing of an agreement to jointly acquire Groendus from NPM Capital. APG and OMERS, as active investors, plan to support Groendus’ ambitious energy transition growth plans.
Groendus is an energy transition platform in the Netherlands that was established in 2021 through the merger of six companies in the rooftop solar, metering and energy services spaces. APG is the largest pension provider in the Netherlands. The investment is done on behalf of its pension fund client ABP and is in line with its strategy to support innovative solutions for the energy transition. OMERS Infrastructure is investing on behalf of OMERS, one of the largest pension plans in Canada. This investment marks first infrastructure investment for OMERS in the Netherlands.
Energy transition solutions
Groendus develops, builds and operates energy assets as well as provides a wide portfolio of ancillary services for its customers. With its team of over 130 people in the Netherlands, Groendus has so far worked with more than 4,000 companies, municipalities and institutions, and has installed more than 170 MWp of solar capacity and over 12,000 meters to date. Groendus is committed to grow its portfolio of 300 solar projects, and also expects to provide customers with an increasing suite of energy transition solutions, such as EV charging and battery storage.
René Raaijmakers, CEO Groendus: “There is an urgent need to transform the traditional energy supply into a sustainable, clean energy system. Jointly with our customers, Groendus makes a major contribution through its renewable energy assets, insights by smart metering data and with our unique peer-to-peer sustainable energy trading platform. We build on the support and strong financial backing of our shareholders. We are grateful for the huge impact NPM Capital has made during the initial years bringing together six companies into the Groendus platform. We are proud for the trust given to our team by OMERS Infrastructure and APG, allowing Groendus to accelerate its efforts to continue building the energy transition service portfolio for our customers.”
Rare opportunity
APG is one of the most active global infrastructure investors and is looking into supporting companies that focus on renewable energy assets and innovative solutions for the energy transition. Jan-Willem Ruisbroek, Head of Global Infrastructure Investment Strategy at APG, says: “APG is excited to announce the investment in Groendus, which is a rare opportunity in the accelerating Dutch energy transition space and fits the core of our strategy. As a pension investor, we are continuously looking for attractive, long-term, responsible investments. Not only do we expect solid returns, it also contributes to APG’s ambition to support the development and scale up of technology enabling a rapid energy transition in the Netherlands as well as the UN Sustainable Development Goals. We are grateful to NPM for establishing the Groendus platform which serves as a foundation of future growth and look forward to working together with OMERS Infrastructure in the years to come to support Groendus in its mission and ensure a long-term and stable investment return for our pension fund client APB and its participants.”