Irish Sovereign Fund to Invest €1bn in Climate Projects Over 5 Years

The Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), managed by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA), has set out plans to invest €1bn in climate action projects over the next 5 years.

The country’s sovereign fund will support green projects comprising renewables and battery storage till 2026.

ISIF made the announcement alongside the publication of its half-year report for H1 2021, whose highlights are given below:

• ISIF generated €450m in investment gains in H1 2021, representing a 5.2% investment return for the six month period and bringing total gains to €1bn over the past 18 months
• total investment gains/added value since inception in 2015 now stand at €2.2bn, with its Irish Portfolio adding €1.4bn and its Global Portfolio adding over €800m
• 10 new investments executed in H1 2021, bringing total commitments in Ireland to €5.2bn across 151 investments
• ISIF also acted as a catalyst for €8.9bn of commitments by third party co-investment partners – a multiple of 1.7x the amount invested by ISIF. This co-investment multiple of €1.7m private sector co-investment for every €1m committed by the fund significantly exceeds its target at inception (of €1m co-investment for every €1m committed by ISIF).
• ISIF capital supported over 48,000 jobs supported and over €1.2bn in Gross Value Added to the Irish economy

“Our planned investment programme reflects the urgency of the climate challenge and the significant opportunities that exist to back Irish businesses and projects that are developing new and more sustainable ways of doing things,” Nick Ashmore, Director of ISIF said.

“ISIF plans to make both direct and fund-based investments aligned with this strategy, partnering with major global investors where appropriate, and will make further announcements over the coming months. We look forward to continuing to invest and be a catalyst for Ireland’s transition to Net Zero,” he added.

ISIF is also responsible for the Pandemic Stabilisation and Recovery Fund (PSRF), a €2 billion fund that was established by the Government in May last year to support companies impacted by the pandemic through investment.

Direct and indirect investments in businesses totaled €613 million across 30 businesses, platforms and projects by the end of June.