Modus Asset Management, a specialised manager of renewable energy funds, secured an additional EUR 21 million of financing from Swedbank for the Modus Remote Solar Fund I. Launched in 2021, the fund invests in remote solar power plants operating in Lithuania that supply electricity to business customers with the status of generating consumers.
The proceeds of the financing (credit) agreement signed with Swedbank will go to enlarging the fund’s portfolio of solar plants. The plan is to use the money to acquire solar power plants with 36 MW of capacity which are now being developed in Kaunas, Šiauliai, Elektrėnai and Ukmergė regions. The fully-operational solar power plants will supply more than 50 companies with the electricity they generate under contract.
“We currently manage the biggest portfolio of remote solar power plants in Lithuania. Binding share purchase-and-sale agreements which have already been signed will enable us to reach a portfolio of solar power plants with total capacity of more than 70 MW in 2023. We only acquire plants that are already built and fully operational and that supply electricity under contracts made in advance. Thus, the fund does not bear their development or construction risk,” Modus Asset Management CEO Povilas Pečiulis says.
The Modus Remote Solar Fund I so far has invested EUR 8 million from its first offering of fund units. It has acquired remote solar plants with 14 MW of capacity. Once a fund reaches a 100 MW of capacity, a sale to an institutional investor is planned.
According to Antanas Sagatauskas, Head of Corporate Banking at Swedbank, to date this is the largest financing ever provided for the acquisition of solar power plants in Lithuania: “We are committed to actively financing solar and wind power generation projects that increase the resilience and competitiveness of the country’s economy and contribute to sustainability and national emission reduction targets. Loans granted to companies under Swedbank’s Green Bond Programme already amount to EUR 330 million,” he notes.
The Modus Remote Solar Fund I is currently holding a second offering phase for its units, with plans to increase the fund’s size by EUR 15 million. The money will be used for further acquisitions of solar power plants in Lithuania. The exit of the fund is envisaged in 4 years.
