RBF is part of an investment consortium putting $117.5m in Lekela, a joint venture between Ireland’s Mainstream Renewable Power (MRP) and private equity group Actis.
The investment round – first announced in June this year – will help underpin Lekela’s development of 1.3GW of wind and solar in Africa by 2018.
RBF – a philanthropic vehicle for heirs of John D. Rockefeller, who made a fortune from oil during the 19th and 20th centuries – has said it wants to back sustainable ventures and sell down its interests in areas such as coal and tar-sands.
RBF president Stephen Heintz said: “I’m confident that if John D. Rockefeller were alive today, he too would recognise the enormous opportunities in the clean energy economy and be at the forefront of the global shift to renewable resources.”
MRP CEO Eddie O’Connor said: “The teaming up of the world’s leading independent renewable power developer with a foundation started by members of the family that effectively founded the global oil industry, is a significant moment in the world’s transition to a new power system based on clean energy.”
Other investors in Lekela via the equity funding round include units of the International Finance Corporation (IFC). MRP itself will contribute a further $60m.
The funding will allow the Lekela Power platform to continue advancing a pipeline of renewable energy developments in Africa that includes four wind farms in South Africa, two wind farms and a solar plant in Egypt, and wind farms in Senegal and Ghana.
