Bluestar Energy Capital, a new-model global renewable energy investor, has been launched by former Orsted Onshore chief Declan Flanagan, with $100m in kick-off funding to begin development of greenfield wind and solar projects in the US, Australia and Europe.

The Chicago-headquartered newco, which is backed by investment houses S2G Ventures and Great Bay Renewables, is targeting early-stage developments in key regional plays with an eye on “opportunistic acquisition activity to drive growth” in the wind, solar and storage sectors.

“A huge amount of capital is seeking a role in the energy transition, but a scarcity remains of the right kind of capital for new development platforms and new projects,” said Flanagan. “Our vision is to be one of the largest global investors of early-stage development capital.”

Along with Flanagan, the Bluestar board will be made up of Aaron Rudberg, COO of S2G, and Frank Getman, CEO of Great Bay. Senan Murphy, former CFO of wind power developer Airtricity (now E.On) has also joined the board as a non-executive.

Rudberg said: “The Bluestar team… understand what the industry needs and are well positioned to capitalise on the growing energy opportunity across the US, Europe, and Asia.”

Getman added: “Declan is a recognised leader in renewables and the global energy transition with an incredible track record of success.”

Following the closing of Bluestar’s lead-off funding round, the company has set up the first two of its regional portfolio platforms: Nova Clean Energy, focused on North America, and Bluestar Energy Australia, for Asia-Pacific.

Among the Bluestar management launch team are company president Dennis Meany, former president of Lincoln Clean Energy; head of project delivery Dylan Reeves, previously chief commercial officer of GE’s onshore wind business; and Nova head of development Jenn Goodwillie, formerly vice president at Orsted Onshore.