South Asia Growth Fund II

Equity : May 2019

South Asia Growth Fund II LP (SAGF II) is a 10-year closed-end investment fund with a $150 m target size, that will invest in energy efficiency and clean energy sectors.

Amount

€ 8,700,000.00

Type of investment

Equity

Development impacts

Local economic growth
Private sector consolidation/innovation
Fight against climate change and preservation of natural resources
Promotion of ESG best practices

Beneficiary locations

Asia: Bangladesh, India

Investment field

Investment Companies & Funds

Activity

SME Fund

Organisation

South Asia Growth Fund II

Website

https://gefcapital.com/capital-partners/

Domicile

Canada

More investments in

South Asia Growth Fund II

Equity $ 2,200,000.00 (2020)

The Fund will principally target portfolio companies located within India, but may also pursue opportunities in Bangladesh. Its emphasis will be investments in 4 key sectors: energy efficiency, the clean energy value chain, water, and environmental products and services (waste, food & agriculture, logistics and materials).

SAGF II is the successor fund of South Asia Clean Energy Fund (SACEF), which closed in 2010 at $128 million out of which $5 million was financed by BIO. SACEF invested in 7 projects across the resource efficiency sector.

Development impacts

Local economic growth
Provision of additional mid to long-term capital to the resource efficiency segment in India and Bangladesh.
Private sector consolidation/innovation
Promotion of technology transfer from the developed countries to India as well as from India to its neighboring countries. Investments will also have a direct impact on job creation (for Fund I, between 2014 and 2017, more than 600 new jobs have been created within the 7 investee companies).
Fight against climate change and preservation of natural resources
Investments in renewable energy / energy efficiency decrease the dependence of India on fossil fuels and contribute to the reduction of energy shortage.
Promotion of ESG best practices
IFC Performance Standards are addressed and included in the overall assessment.

Made possible through this investment

Thanks to the direct funding from BIO, the following second-line investments have been made possible.

ESDS Software Solutions Private Limited

India

ESDS Software Solution Private Limited (ESDS) founded in 2005, by first generation entrepreneur, Piyush Somani, is one of the leading Indian providers of managed datacentre and cloudhosting solutions.