The Groningen developer of large-scale sustainable energy systems Novar (formerly Solarfields) will be acquired by DIF Capital Partners. The investment company will own 60 percent.
Novar thus acquires capital to cross the border and enable further growth, says CEO and co-founder of the Groningen company Gerben Smit.
Projects in the pipeline
The company currently operates energy projects with a combined capacity of 440 megawatts. The objective is to have 4 gigawatts of operational capacity by 2030. It says it has 15 gigawatts worth of projects in the pipeline.
“The investment in Novar offers DIF the opportunity to support the Dutch market leader in solar energy,” says Gijs Voskuyl, partner at DIF. “The existing contracted portfolio of 440 MW gives us a strong investment proposition, and with the extensive pipeline of new projects we continue to invest in the energy transition.”
Solarfields
Novar was founded in 2014 under the name Solarfields by Smit and Jelmer Pijlman. It became big as a developer of solar parks. The company changed its name to Novar earlier this year. In doing so, it marked that it has gradually become involved in sustainable energy systems in a broad sense. This is no longer just about generating energy, but also about storage and distribution.
It is developing a number of eye-catching projects in Groningen and Drenthe. In Nieuw-Buinen it is working with contractor Avitec on a hydrogen factory that will produce electricity from the Vloeivelden Hollandia solar park. It is building a private network in the municipalities of Midden-Groningen and Oldambt, to which, among other things, the future Eekerpolder solar park (between Zuidbroek Scheemda) will be connected. In Groningen, Novar is working on a large solar thermal park that will feed the heating network for the northern city districts.
Assets under management of 16 billion euros
DIF Capital Partners manages assets of 16 billion euros. DIF was founded in 2005 and, in addition to its head office in Amsterdam, has offices in Frankfurt, Helsinki, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, New York, Paris, Santiago, Sydney and Toronto.
The takeover still needs to be approved by various authorities. This is expected to happen this year.