Commerz Real launched its first impact fund for private investors in October 2020. The vision of klimaVest is clearly defined: Invest and contribute to climate protection. The fund thus addresses the challenge of climate change and for the first time also offers private investors access to investments in renewable energies, such as wind farms and photovoltaic plants. In addition to completed plants, the fund invests in project developments in order to actively promote the expansion of renewable energies. In this way, the themes of "attractive returns" and "measurable ecological impact" are combined. The fund aims to contribute to the long-term limitation of global warming in accordance with the goals of the Paris Agreement of 2015 and to fulfil sustainability parameters of the EU taxonomy.
Over its lifetime of at least 50 years, the Impact Fund aims to build a portfolio of renewable energy generation assets as well as sustainable infrastructure, mobility and forestry assets worth a total of at least €25 billion, of which approximately €10 billion is equity. Investors can participate from €10.000 and receive regular reporting not only on the performance but also on the climate impact achieved by the assets in the fund. With the CO2 calculator, investors can estimate their personal CO2 footprint in the first section and the targeted CO2 avoidance of the renewable energy investments of klimaVest in the second section.
In order to achieve the climate goals of the European Green Deal, considerably more investments are needed than have been made so far. The klimaVest aims to make a substantial contribution to the energy turnaround: the fund aims to avoid approximately 3,5 tonnes per 10.000 euros with the renewable energy plants. Since its launch in October 2020, the fund has collected approximately €978 million in customer deposits. As of 31 August 2021, the current portfolio consists of 19 wind farms and three solar power plants. In addition, there are four solar park project developments that will be completed in the upcoming years. The nominal capacity of the existing assets totals 361 megawatts and that of the project developments to be completed in the future 231 megawatts.
For Commerzbank, klimaVest is an important addition to its product range, as the interest of bank customers in sustainable investments is increasing significantly. While so-called ESG funds (Environmental, Social and Governance) are usually defined by exclusion criteria - for example, not investing in lignite, oil and gas - impact funds aim to make a measurable positive contribution. For example, klimaVest aims to limit global warming by avoiding more than 200,000 tonnes of CO2 per year, while at the same time achieving an appropriate return.
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