January 29th, 2020, Singapore – Sunseap Group Pte Ltd (Sunseap), Singapore’s leading renewable energy solutions provider, has secured a total of S$50 million from ABC World Asia, an Asia-focused impact investing private equity fund, and Temasek, a global investment company headquartered in Singapore.
The investment will be used for solar projects in Singapore and other parts of Asia.
With solar systems installed on the rooftops of more than 1,500 public housing HDB blocks in Singapore, Sunseap currently produces enough clean energy to power approximately 42,000 four-room HDB households annually. It allows residential customers to reduce their carbon footprints by switching to certified green energy through the liberalised electricity retail market. It also recently won the tender for SolarNova 4, which will see solar panels installed across buildings in Singapore, including 1,218 HDB blocks and 49 government sites and expected to generate more than 70 MegaWatt-peak (MWp) of solar energy, increasing Sunseap’s generation capabilities in Singapore.
Through its offsite clean energy supply contracts, the renewable energy solutions provider also plays a critical role in enabling companies like global tech giants Apple and Microsoft meet their zero-carbon targets. In 2019, Sunseap reached a new milestone by commissioning one of the largest solar farms in Vietnam. Across the region, it has a total operating, under-construction and developmental asset project capacity of 1.7 GigaWatt-peak including a strong pipeline of projects in China, Taiwan, Japan and other parts of Southeast Asia.
Sunseap’s President and Executive Director Mr Lawrence Wu said: “Sunseap was founded on the idea that we could provide attractive clean energy solutions to businesses and individuals on a commercially viable basis. Through this investment from Temasek and ABC World Asia, we gain partners not only interested in our ability to grow as a company, but also our ability to bring climate change solutions to new markets and drive positive environmental impact.”
Sunseap’s CEO and Executive Director Mr Frank Phuan added: “As we embark on the next phase of growth, we look forward to partnering and supporting more businesses in their drive for a sustainable future, as well as developing more renewable energy solutions and pursuing energy efficiency projects, building Sunseap to be a distributed utility provider in Singapore and across the region.”
ABC World Asia is focused on five investment themes in which independent research has shown that impact is achievable and measurable in quantitative terms. “Renewable energy is a growing sector that presents a compelling opportunity to create meaningful positive outcomes,” said ABC World Asia’s Founder and Chief Executive Officer Mr David Heng. “This investment addresses two of the five investment themes identified as areas of focus for ABC World Asia – Climate Solutions, and Smart and Liveable Cities.” he added. The transaction marks the first investment by ABC World Asia.
“Asia’s electricity and heat generation sector alone creates 25% of global CO² emissions. While climate change is expected to affect every region in the world, the consequences of global warming and negative effects of greenhouse gas emissions on people’s health are felt more severely in Asia,” said ABC World Asia’s Managing Director Mr Tan Shao Ming. “Through its integrated solutions and its presence across 12 markets in Asia Pacific, Sunseap is well positioned to play a transformative role in the energy sector, making it a natural fit for ABC World Asia.” Mr Tan Shao Ming will also join Sunseap Group’s Board of Directors.
Credit Suisse (Singapore) Limited and DBS Bank Ltd. acted as financial advisers to Sunseap for this transaction.
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About Sunseap Group
Sunseap Group is the leading solar energy system developer, owner and operator in Singapore. It operates through five key units: Sunseap Leasing, Sunseap International, Sunseap Energy, Sunseap Engineering and Sunseap Solutions. Sunseap Leasing is the first and largest solar leasing company in Singapore. Sunseap International targets markets in the South East Asian and Pacific regions. These include a 168 MegaWatt-peak (MWp) solar farm in Vietnam, a 140 MWp solar farm in India, and a 10 MWp solar farm in Cambodia. Sunseap Energy provides renewable energy solutions utilising off-site arrangements by drawing on solar systems within the Group’s portfolio of distributed generation assets. A notable client of Sunseap Energy is Apple, which signed an agreement with Sunseap to procure 100% of its local energy requirements from renewable sources. Sunseap Energy is also providing Microsoft 100% of the renewable energy produced from 60 MW of rooftop solar projects in Singapore. Sunseap Engineering provides engineering, procurement and construction as well as operation and maintenance services for PV projects. Sunseap Solutions focuses on energy efficiency solutions by providing services such as energy audits, lighting retrofitting and green roof systems.
About ABC World Asia
Headquartered in Singapore, ABC World Asia is a private equity fund dedicated to impact investing. Impact investing encompasses the intention to generate positive, measurable social or environmental impact, alongside a compelling risk-adjusted return.
The fund’s investment strategy aligns with Temasek’s ABC Framework for an Active Economy, a Beautiful Society and a Clean Earth, building on the ideals of the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals.
ABC World Asia will focus on themes including – financial and digital inclusion; better health and education; climate and water solutions; sustainable food and agriculture; and smart and liveable cities.
For more information, please visit www.abcworld.com.sg
About Temasek
Temasek is an investment company with a net portfolio value of S$313 billion as at 31 March 2019. Temasek’s Charter roles as an investor, institution and steward, shape its investment stance, ethos and philosophy, to do well, do right and do good. Its investment philosophy is anchored around four key themes – Transforming Economies, Growing Middle Income Populations, Deepening Comparative Advantages, Emerging Champions.
Temasek actively seeks sustainable solutions to address present and future challenges. Aiming to enable a better, smarter and more sustainable world, Temasek’s investments are guided by six structural trends: longer lifespans, rising affluence, sustainable living, a more connected world, smarter systems, and a sharing economy.
Headquartered in Singapore, Temasek has 11 offices around the world: Beijing, Hanoi, Mumbai, Shanghai and Singapore in Asia; and London, New York, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Mexico City, and Sao Paulo outside Asia.
For more information on Temasek, please visit www.temasek.com.sg