London-based Just Climate was launched in 2021 by Al Gore’s Generation Investment Management to invest in growth-stage, asset-heavy companies that are reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Its portfolio includes Sweden-based H2 Green Steel and biogas producer Meva Energy, as well as Swiss EV charging company ABB E-Mobility.
The firm has taken a stake in Continuum Green Energy, one of India’s largest sellers of renewable energy to commercial and industrial buyers. The deal is Just Climate’s first in India, a coal-dependent country with surging energy demands and a goal of reaching net zero by 2070.
The capital will enable Continuum Green Energy to develop an additional 1.3 gigawatts of renewable energy and storage projects on top of its existing 2.2 gigawatt portfolio.
Out with coal
India is sending mixed signals in its commitment to the green energy transition. Coal-fired energy growth outpaced India’s renewable energy growth last year for the first time since 2019, and state-run Coal India said it will expand its coal output.
Continuum serves business customers as well as state-owned electricity distribution companies in the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
“Continuum’s deployment of renewable energy will help displace coal power generation, realizing the type of significant greenhouse gas emissions abatement that we at Just Climate look for in our investments while also managing impacts on people and planet,” Just Climate’s Tushar Kumar said.
Pre-IPO
Continuum has been majority-owned by Morgan Stanley since 2012, when the bank acquired 92% of the company via its infrastructure division. (The rest is owned by Continuum’s founders.) The company earlier this year sought a $200 million loan to buy back a portion of Morgan Stanley’s share. Just Climate’s investment suggests that Morgan Stanley reduced its stake.
The Economic Times of India reported in May that Continuum was preparing to raise funds from two unnamed global private equity investors that would give the company a $1 billion valuation ahead of a planned initial public offering.
