Actis has secured an impact-linked revolving subscription credit facility for its latest energy fund, Actis Energy 5. The facility includes Revolving Subscription Credit Facility of up to $1.2bn to be used to finance investments in accordance with the Fund’s investment strategy. This new credit facility represents the latest in the evolution of sustainability-linked financing, charting a new course when it comes to financing private market investments in the energy sector. It will mean our latest energy fund is fully incentivized to invest in a just and equitable energy transition, and that these investments deliver meaningful positive impact for the environment and society, and further support our mission of transforming infrastructure for a better tomorrow.
This hybrid format facility seeks to overcome the limitations of existing impact-linked structures, by incentivizing that loan proceeds are directed to projects that will deliver social and environmental improvement, and that these can be objectively and continually measured for the magnitude of their impact using the AIS. By focusing on measurable impact outcomes, Actis and the facility’s two sustainability coordinators, Citi and Standard Chartered, hope to catalyze widespread adoption of this new hybrid format in other financing structures, which will help deliver positive social and environmental outcomes across private markets. The investment strategy is set up to solely invest in sustainable infrastructure projects that contribute to UN Sustainable Development Goal 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy). The Actis Impact Score, first developed in 2019, is based on the industry consensus for impact measurement and management established by the Impact Management Project and aligns investment impact with the UN sustainable development goals. Actis uses the AIS throughout the lifecycle of an investment to ensure that the impact intent is clear across the firm and reduces the risk of misalignment in objectives.