Scalar And Mergence Launch Usd 150 M Private Equity Fund To Support Clean Energy Projects
Scalar International and Mergence Investment Managers have announced the launch of the Africa Decarbonization Fund I, a private equity fund aimed at accelerating clean energy and digital infrastructure projects across the Southern African Development Community SADC.
The fund is managed in partnership between Scalar International, a black-owned international venture capital and private equity firm recently selected for the 2024 ICFA Cohort, and Mergence Investment Managers, a leading black-owned institutional fund manager with a strong track record in impact investing across the region.
Targeting a fund size of between USD 100 M and USD 150 M, the Africa Decarbonization Fund I is one of only ten globally designated as an "Article 9" fund under the EU's Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation SFDR.
Via the fund, the Scalar and Mergence impact partnership will invest in energy-efficient and decarbonisation projects in the private commercial and industrial C I sector. The aim is to support the emergence of first-tier, indigenous, women- and youth-led companies developing new technologies in clean energy and digital infrastructure.
The fund's first phase of investments is focused on C I decarbonisation and energy efficiency in Southern Africa. The current project pipeline is centred on the data centre and manufacturing sectors, which have experienced a 40 decline in grid reliability due to reliance on the regional energy pool.
