The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has approved its investment in a new renewables fund focused on emerging Asia.

The AIIB has approved a US$50 million investment in the Southeast Asia energy transition-focused private equity fund established by Swiss investment firm SUSI Partners.

The SUSI Asia Energy Transition Fund, which has a target size of US$250 million, invests in renewable energy, energy efficiency, energy storage, and microgrid projects in developing Asia, with a special focus on Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Vietnam.

The targeted project portfolio will be diversified across 10 to 15 renewable energy and 10 to 15 energy efficiency projects. According to the AIIB Project Summary, the first close of the fund is expected in the first quarter of 2020, with the final close by the third quarter of 2021.

In addition to the US$50 million commitment, AIIB will also invest an additional US$50 million alongside the fund on a deal-by-deal basis.

The Asia Energy Transition fund was launched in 2017 by SUSI Partners, in partnership with the South Pole Group.

The fund marks SUSI’s first investment vehicle for institutional investors, dedicated exclusively to the Southeast Asian energy transition towards renewables.

AIIB’s Environmental and Social Policy is applicable to this investment. The AIIB delegates to SUSI Partners Asia Pte Ltd (SUSI Asia) the decision-making on the use of AIIB’s funds for investments into sub-projects that meet the conditions to be agreed with the client in the form of eligibility criteria and investment guidelines, and applied through an Environmental and Social Management System (ESMS).