Stonepeak Partners has raised $2.75 billion for its first fund solely dedicated to investments in renewable energy.

The infrastructure-focused firm wrapped up Stonepeak Global Renewables Fund LP at an increased hard cap and far above its original $1.25 billion target, the firm said. More than 40 investors from 15 countries backed the fund.

One such investor, the New York State Common Retirement Fund, last year pledged $250 million to the fund, according to the WSJ Pro Private Equity LP Commitments database. The pension invested an additional $100 million in a parallel co-investment pool. Also last year, Border to Coast Pensions Partnership, a pension fund in the U.K., committed $100 million to the fund, the data show.

The fundraising benefited from increased investor appetite for renewable-energy strategies, said Hajir Naghdy, a Stonepeak senior managing director. The sector’s fast growth, combined with a desire by investors to participate in the world’s shift to clean energy, is driving capital to renewable energy-focused funds, industry consultants said.

Private-equity firms world-wide raised $52.2 billion across 55 renewable energy funds last year, 17% more than the $44.6 billion they collected across 73 funds in 2019, according to data provider Preqin Ltd. in London. Through early June this year, 27 such funds have raised $29.9 billion, Preqin data show.

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Article source: The Wall Street Journal