Axa secures 15 wind farms

Paris-headquartered Axa Private Equity has acquired Babcock & Brown’s wind assets in France for an undisclosed sum.

The acquisition was completed through Axa’s infrastructure fund and will involve a platform of 15 wind farms with a total capacity of 163MW. The farms are situated within a 300km radius to the north, west and south of Paris.

Kallista Energies Renouvelables (formerly called Enersis Energies Renouvelables) and Kallista France (formerly Enersis France) will be held through Holding Energies Renouvelables, a holding company dedicated to renewable energy investments in France. The existing management team, headed by Frédéric Roche, will remain in place.

Head of infrastructure at Axa Private Equity, Mathias Burghardt said: “We are continuing to take advantage of the favourable investment conditions which prevail in the infrastructure market. This transaction is part of a strategy to build a portfolio of diversified assets in order to become a major player in the European renewable energy sector.”

Axa was supported by SAUR, the third largest water service company in France. The Paris-based private equity firm holds a 17% shareholding in SAUR.