abrdn invests in Italian biomethane platform

• abrdn infrastructure team agrees long-term partnership with Blu-H Energy S.r.l (“BHE”)
• The partnership between abrdn and BHE (the partnership) has acquired two biogas facilities in Italy

abrdn is pleased to announce that its Infrastructure team has entered into a long-term partnership with BHE.

As part of its strategy, the partnership will look to acquire operational biogas assets in Italy, with a view to upgrade the facilities to enable the production of biomethane, making them eligible for the recently enacted Biomethane Decree[1]. Today, the partnership has signed agreements to acquire two operating biogas facilities, and has plans to make  further acquisitions in the near term.

BHE is an Italian, renewable gas specialist, with origination and asset management capability, as well as a network of strong relationships with equipment providers, regulatory bodies and sector specialists.

Once upgraded, the facilities will use best-in-class technology to produce biomethane, reducing Italy’s dependency on external gas imports while supporting its wider energy transition objectives. 

This marks the third investment by abrdn’s third Core Infrastructure Fund, ASCI III, which is currently fundraising and investing in the pan-European infrastructure mid-market and is categorised as Article 8 under SFDR.

Dominic Helmsley, Head of abrdn Core Infrastructure, said: “We are thrilled to announce the third transaction from our third infrastructure fund, ASCI III, and our first investment in Italy. We are committed to supporting the renewable energy sector and we are delighted to partner with BHE to contribute towards Italy’s energy transition.”

William Cunneen, Investment Director, abrdn Core Infrastructure, said: “The biomethane sector is expected to see significant growth over coming years, and we believe Italy is one of the most attractive markets within Europe in this space. BHE has a wealth of origination and asset management expertise and we look forward to working together to build a biomethane platform within Italy”.

Franco Ferrario, Chief Executive Officer at Blu-H Energy, said: 
“We are delighted to seal our partnership with abrdn, which with over a decade of experience in infrastructure investments, brings a wide breadth of capabilities to the BLU-H platform. This partnership demonstrates our dedication to a greener future, leveraging each other's strengths to achieve significant long-term growth in the renewable energy sector. Our ambition is to become a leading Italian biomethane producer, and together with abrdn, we will be able to make this a reality. We thank abrdn for firmly believing in BLU-H, and to the teams on both sides for working endlessly over the past few months to make this possible”.

Ends

Media enquiries 
Debbie Cowe, 
Media Relations Manager, abrdn
debbie.cowe@abrdn.com
+44 (0) 7711 774017

Notes to editors
About abrdn
abrdn’s Core Infrastructure team has successfully raised and deployed two infrastructure funds totalling over €2.3 billion and is currently raising its third infrastructure fund, abrdn Core Infrastructure III. Fund III has raised half of the €1 billion target.

• abrdn is a global investment company that helps clients and customers plan, save and invest for the future. Our purpose is to enable our clients to be better investors.
• abrdn manages and administers £495.7bn of assets for clients (as at 30 June 2023).
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• Our teams collaborate across regions, asset classes and specialisms, connecting diverse perspectives and working with clients to identify  investment opportunities that suit their needs.
• As at 30 June 2023, our Investments business manages £368bn on behalf of clients - including insurance companies, sovereign wealth funds, independent wealth managers, pension funds, platforms, banks and family offices.

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1 Decreto del Ministero della Transizione Ecologica n. 340 of 15th of September 2022.