Barking & Dagenham Giving (“BD Giving”), a community led fund and grantmaker with the goal of making the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham a better place with its residents, is delighted to announce a strategic investment of £250,000 into NextEnergy Solar Fund (“NESF”), a leading specialist solar energy and energy storage investment company with a mission to lead the transition to clean energy through solar power.
The investment was made from BD Giving’s community-led investment fund (“the Fund”) the UK’s first community-led impact investment vehicle. BD Giving’s community steering group selected NESF as the ideal investment to promote the UK’s net-zero transition and clean energy goals given its large operating solar asset base throughout the UK.
The investment policy for the Fund aims to achieve a balance between impact, risk and return. A local community steering group, comprised of twelve residents of Barking & Dagenham, was entrusted with the decision-making process, and selected NESF to further social equity. NESF was a natural fit to the Fund’s investment policy, demonstrating to Barking and Dagenham residents the forward-thinking approach undertaken by the BD Giving team as they work towards a net-zero future.
NESF has a portfolio of 92 operating solar assets in the UK with a total combined installed power capacity of 933MW. This generates enough renewable energy to power the equivalent of c.242,000 average UK home electricity needs for an entire year. NextEnergy Solar Fund also leads many Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) initiatives and benefits for the communities in which it establishes solar sites. Further information around these initiatives can be found on NESF’s website and NESF’s ESG & sustainability report.
Peter Hamid, Vice President at NextEnergy Capital commented: “We are delighted that NextEnergy Solar Fund has been selected as the second investment for the UK’s first community-led impact investment vehicle for the people of Barking and Dagenham. This investment shows that renewable energy, climate change and the challenges of Net Zero are relevant to every type of investor in the UK. We look forward to working closely with the borough to further their ambitions, and welcome further educational site visits to our solar farms for the community of Barking & Dagenham soon.”
Kasang Kajang, Barking and Dagenham resident and former Community Steering Group member, said: “Our investment in NESF represents our interest in a Net Zero future in the borough and beyond. We look forward to seeing the positive impact of NESF’s work on communities across the UK and will continue supporting NESF through its transformative initiatives that will inevitably reach Barking and Dagenham.”