Neptune Infrastructure Associates has expanded its London presence as it looks to support growing demand from energy transition investors seeking to improve returns from existing assets, the company said.
The firm, which works with non-operating investors in energy transition infrastructure, has moved into new office space in the City of London while retaining its existing satellite operations across the UK.
It has also hired Oscar Cole, formerly of renewable energy investor SDCL, to help build out its London team and work with new mandates from clean energy investors based in the capital.
The expansion comes as infrastructure investors face a more challenging market for new transactions, increasing the focus on improving the performance of existing assets and extracting greater value from portfolios.
Neptune said investment teams are increasingly being asked to drive stronger returns from assets already held, while remaining lean and managing the operational demands associated with infrastructure ownership.
The firm provides support across day-to-day asset supervision, technical diligence and portfolio performance analysis, with the aim of allowing investment teams to focus more closely on strategy and investment decisions.
Its permanent London presence is intended to strengthen relationships with investment managers, infrastructure funds and institutional investors based in the capital.
Cole joins Neptune after working as an asset manager at SDCL, where he was responsible for operating businesses across the UK, US and Europe.
Hamish Yates, founder of Neptune Infrastructure Associates, said: “Investment into energy transition infrastructure is in a challenging cycle. Investors face constraints around new project acquisitions, so there is much greater focus on how to drive enhanced returns from existing assets, or secure increased value from disposals.
“While tighter capital availability means investment teams are deliberately lean, we’re seeing increasing demand for experienced resource that can sit alongside those teams, take responsibility for much of the supervision and analysis involved in managing complex portfolios, and enable investors to focus on value-add, strategy and decision making.
“By expanding our team with Oscar’s specialist experience, alongside establishing a permanent presence closer to our London client base, we’re increasing our capacity to meet that demand as the business continues to grow.”
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