MAPFRE launches Europe’s first biomethane investment fund. IAM Carbonzero will lead the development of the biomethane plants
The project aims to invest in the construction and development of between 20 and 25 plants producing this energy in Spain over five years.
The vehicle, the first of its kind, will be opened to other institutional investors and private banking clients.
The target return for MAPFRE Energías Renovables II, which it is launching together with its partner Abante, is between 12% and 15% per year.
MAPFRE, together with its partner Abante and IAM Carbonzero, as the fund’s adviser and a company specialised in the energy sector, are launching the MAPFRE Energías Renovables II, FCR fund—an innovative project in Europe that will invest in biomethane, a 100% green biofuel obtained from animal and plant waste that can be injected directly into the natural gas grid, generate electricity through engines, and be used as a fuel.
The fund, which will be opened to other institutional investors and private banking clients, aims to raise up to €100 million in an initial phase, to be allocated to the construction and development of between 20 and 25 plants in Spain over a five-year period, which is expected to generate a total of 70 permanent jobs and 240 indirect jobs.
This means multiplying by five the currently installed capacity of this type of energy in Spain. “We are very proud to present this unique and highly profitable project to contribute from the private sector, and in collaboration with the public administration, to the increasingly necessary energy independence from abroad. This is, once again, a clear example of our commitment to socially responsible investments, as we seek to mitigate the environmental impact of our portfolio while improving the social and environmental conditions of the communities where we invest,” says José Luis Jiménez, MAPFRE’s Chief Investment Officer.
Specifically, this project aims to work on several defined pillars, such as decarbonising the planet, the energy crisis, and the high dependence on importing natural gas from abroad, as well as investment in rural areas through agriculture and livestock farming.
“For Abante, it is very interesting to collaborate with Mapfre and IAM Carbonzero on a project that, in addition to being very attractive for investors, generates a very positive impact on society,” explains Joaquín Casasús, Partner and CEO of Abante Asesores Gestión.
This is MAPFRE’s second renewable energy project, as part of its commitment to alternative assets and, in particular, ESG investments. Two years ago, it signed an alliance with Iberdrola to invest in wind and photovoltaic plants in Spain, which last month they took to the next level with the addition of 150 new megawatts (MW), bringing the joint venture to 445 MW.
About MAPFRE
MAPFRE is a global insurer. A benchmark company in the Spanish market, it is the largest Spanish insurer in the world, the leading insurance group in Latin America, and ranks sixth among Europe’s largest non-life insurers by premium volume. MAPFRE has more than 31,000 employees and, in 2022, its revenue exceeded €29.5 billion and net profit stood at €642 million.
About Abante
Abante is an independent financial institution specialising in financial advice and asset management, aligned in the long term with clients’ interests. The Abante Asesores group, founded in 2002, signed a strategic alliance with Mapfre in 2019 to create the most competitive independent financial advice and asset management platform in the Spanish market.
It currently manages and advises on more than €10 billion, has more than 11,300 clients and a team of nearly 300 professionals, across nine offices: Madrid, Barcelona, Bilbao, Logroño, Pamplona, Zaragoza, Valladolid, Seville and Málaga. Abante’s clients are individual investors, family and business groups, Family Offices and institutions that need a comprehensive proposal for financial, wealth, real estate and corporate advice, as well as specialised and independent access to all markets and assets—financial, alternative and real estate.
About IAM Carbonzero
IAM Carbonzero is the company that will advise the fund. Made up of a multidisciplinary team with extensive experience in the energy sector, it includes engineers, chemists, economists, finance professionals, lawyers and biologists with deep knowledge of the energy market, renewable energies, and specifically biogas and biomethane.
Its objectives include contributing to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions, improving waste management, helping to reduce energy dependence and improve security of supply, and promoting social and territorial integration through investment in rural areas—supporting population retention and attracting talent by creating jobs—along with boosting the circular economy by transforming organic waste into biomethane and biofertilisers.