BlackRock, the world’s largest asset manager, will invest up to $400 million in Dubai-based decarbonisation company Positive Zero through a diversified infrastructure fund.
The investment will support Positive Zero’s goal to grow sustainable energy adoption across the GCC, in line with efforts to reduce carbon emissions and limit global warming, the company said on Monday.
The company was set up by Creek Capital last year through a merger of solar company SirajPower, energy efficiency services business Taka Solutions and on-demand battery company HYPR Energy.
“This investment not only endorses the region's potential and our innovative business model but also aligns with our mutual aspiration to cultivate a new era in the energy economy,” said Mohammed Hussain, co-founder and chairman of Positive Zero.
“We are set on a journey to achieve the ambitious Cop28 targets of tripling renewables and doubling efficiency by 2030.”
At the UN climate summit that ended last week, countries agreed to work together to triple the world’s current renewable energy generation capacity to at least 11,000 gigawatts by 2030, considering different starting points and national circumstances.
They will also aim to double the global average annual rate of energy efficiency improvements to 4 per cent, from 2 per cent currently, amid efforts to limit the global temperature rise to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels, the key Paris Agreement goal.
“We are very excited about our investment in Positive Zero on behalf of our clients,” said Ed Winter, BlackRock's Asia Pacific and Middle East head for diversified infrastructure.
“Positive Zero is well-positioned to capitalise on tailwinds driven by ambitious economic growth and energy transition objectives set by the UAE and other countries in the GCC region.”
BlackRock is among the institutional investors backing the UAE’s $30 billion climate fund called Alterra, which aims to raise $250 billion globally in the next six years.
“Decarbonisation and decentralisation are two key structural trends that we believe presents significant investment opportunities,” Mr Winter said.
By 2030, emerging markets and developing economies will require $2.4 trillion every year to address climate change, according to the Climate Policy Initiative.
Meanwhile, Deloitte has said investment of $5 trillion to $7 trillion a year is needed until 2050 in the energy sector to drive the transition but less than $2 trillion is currently spent each year.
