Our investment
Description of the investment.
Description of the investment.
South Asia Growth Fund III, is managed by GEF Capital Partners, a USD 400m to USD 420m climate focused fund and one of the pioneer impact and climate investors in India. GEF III will invest in multiple sectors aligned with BII’s Sustainable strategic impact objective, including less commercially mature climate finance segments. GEF III will pursue climate opportunities across three investment theses: (1) Climate change adaptation; (2) Mitigation and (3) Circular Economy in India (90%) and Southeast Asia (10%).
Impact information
Applies to investments made from 2019 onwards. The tabs in this section define what we expect to achieve through the investment, assessing the potential impact of the investment against six dimensions of impact. You can find more details on our methodology of assessing impact here.
Applies to investments made from 2019 onwards. The tabs in this section define what we expect to achieve through the investment, assessing the potential impact of the investment against six dimensions of impact. You can find more details on our methodology of assessing impact here.
What?
| Impact |
|---|
GEF III will invest in multiple sectors aligned with BII’s Sustainable strategic impact objective, including less commercially mature climate finance segments to which we currently have limited exposure. The fund’s investments are expected to contribute to: (1) greenhouse gas emissions abatement through increased renewable energy generation, energy efficiency and sustainable building practices; (2) reduced waste through increased recycling and resource recovery; (3) reduced freshwater consumption and increased water-use efficiency; and (4) sustainable food production and agricultural practices. GEF is an Operating Principles for Impact Management (OPIM) signatory with a robust Impact Action Plan agreed for the fund’s impact measurement and management system. |
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How?
| Primary | Secondary |
|---|---|
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(1) Investments in renewable energy value chain (project components, energy storage, smart grids), energy efficiency (smart meters, analytics), and/or e-mobility (EV/EV components, ancillary infra) solutions. (2) Investments in water security (wastewater treatment, water-efficient equipment), smart cities, green buildings, and/or waste recovery (waste and e-waste recycling and reuse, waste to energy) solutions. (3) Investments in food security (organic agri inputs, precision farming, crop/livestock resilience improvements, and/or agri logistics and supply chain improvements) solutions. |
Catalysing markets: Fund can help demonstrate the viability and encourage further replication of businesses operating in nascent climate sectors in India, i.e., e-mobility, food/water security, and resource/waste recovery, by supporting the scale-up of mid-market companies. Early signposts of success would be commercial returns for the portfolio; over 5 years, increased investment activity by commercial investors in these sub-sectors. |
Who?
| Stakeholder | Geography | Characteristics |
|---|---|---|
|
India (90%) and Southeast Asia (10%) |
Impact score
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Impact score (at point of investment)
The Impact Score is a tool to help us manage our performance against our strategic impact objectives. It is designed to incentivise investments that support our productive, sustainable, and inclusive objectives. You can find out more here. The Impact Score is published for investments made from 2022 onwards. The Impact Scores are calculated at the point of investment. We publish the Impact Scores of new investments annually, once the information has been externally assured by an independent third party. |
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6 |
Environmental and social information
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Environmental and social summary
A high-level description of the environmental and social aspects of the investment. This may include a summary of key environmental and social risks identified during environmental and social due diligence (ESDD); key elements of an environmental and social action plan (ESAP); or ways in which we plan to support the investee improve environmental and social standards, such as through their environmental and social management system (ESMS); as well as any other priority areas agreed with the investee.
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Environmental and social risk
A risk category rating, which indicates the level of environmental and social risk associated with an investment. For an explanation of the categorisations used, see here. We consistently provide an environmental and social risk category for all investments screened from 2023 onwards.
Environmental and social summary
We are working closely with the fund manager to establish a strong E&S risk management system, through training and engagement.
Environmental and social risk
Medium-High
Reporting and Complaints Mechanism
The Reporting and Complaints Mechanism allows anyone outside BII to report alleged breaches of the business integrity or environmental and social provisions of BII’s Policy on Responsible Investing. This includes breaches made by BII, a BII investee, or a portfolio company of a fund in which BII has invested. The Reporting and Complaints Mechanism Rules are available here. Reports and complaints can be submitted by email to reportsandcomplaints@bii.co.uk or by mail. See more details on our Reporting and Complaints Mechanism here.
For any other general enquiries contact us at enquiries@bii.co.uk
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Key facts
- First published
:
When the investment was first published on the website database.
- January 2024
- Last updated
:
When the last quarterly update of the website database occurred.
- June 2024
- Project number
:
An identifier number shared by investments in the same project.
- D5521
- Status
:
The current status of the investment (green flag for active and red flag for exited).
- Active
- Region
:
The geographical region where the country is located. We currently invest in Africa, South Asia, South East Asia and the Caribbean. In 2023, BII’s investment mandate was extended allowing it to invest in regional funds linked to Ukraine, with the majority of activity expected to begin post-war. Investments outside these regions were made prior to 2012 under previous investment mandates.
- Asia, South Asia
- Investment type :
- Fund
- Start date :
- August 2023
- Amount :
- $25m
- Currency of investment :
- USD
- Fund Manager:
- GEF Capital Partners LLC
- Domicile
:
The company or investment fund’s place of incorporation.
- USA
We provide capital in the following ways: directly – through direct equity, direct debt, guarantees and other non-intermediated financial instruments; and indirectly – principally through investment funds.
For direct investments and fund investments, this is the date BII committed capital to the investments. This is typically the date on which legal agreements are signed by all parties.
For the portfolio companies of our fund investments, this is the date (either the month or the quarter) on which the fund committed capital to the portfolio company.
For direct equity investments, this is the date at which British International Investment exited the investment.
For debt investments, this is the date at which the final debt repayment was made.
For funds, this is the date at which the fund was terminated.
For underlying fund investments, this is the date at which the fund manager exited the investment.
The total amount committed, per financial instrument, per investment, on the date BII becomes subject to a binding legal obligation to provide funding or assume a contingent liability. This information is provided in US dollars.
For direct investments, this is the amount that BII has committed to the business or project. For fund investments, this is the amount BII has committed to the fund.
The currency in which the investment was made.
- Climate finance
:
Indicates whether the investment is climate finance qualified or partially climate finance qualified and the type of climate finance (adaptation, mitigation or both). We define climate finance using the multilateral development bank (MDB) and the International Development Finance Club (IDFC) Common Principles climate finance methodology. See Common Principles for Climate Mitigation Finance Tracking and Common Principles for Climate Change Adaptation Finance Tracking. We provide the climate finance qualification and type for commitments from 2020 onwards, which is when we launched our Climate Change Strategy.
- Fully qualified
- Climate finance type:
- Mitigation
- First published
Investments made by this fund into companies:
For further information about these companies, visit https://gefcapital.com/capital-partners/
| Investment name | Country | Region | Sector | Start date | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Asia Growth Fund III Holdings, L.P | India | South Asia | Manufacturing | June 2024 | Active |
