Innergex Renewable Energy Inc (TSX: INE) has closed its acquisition of the 44 megawatt Yonne wind farm in northern France. The deal, which was done in partnership with Régime de rentes du Mouvement Desjardins, reflected a purchase price of €35.2 million ($49 million). Innergex now owns a 69.55 percent interest in the wind farm, while Desjardins owns the remaining 30.45 percent. Based in Longueuil, Québec, Innergex is an owner and operator of hydroelectric facilities, wind farms and solar photovoltaic farms in Canada, the United States and Europe. It is a portfolio investment of Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec.
4 min read · 21 February 2017
A report by the Advancing Innovation Roundtable, an investor-led working group funded by TMX Group, argues that a capital gap for growth-stage companies is inhibiting Canada's innovation economy and must be closed. Salil Munjal, the roundtable's chair, said the gap, estimated at $4 billion, can be addressed with "immediate actions" involving both private and public-market players. The report proposes several recommendations, targeted to institutional capital, public markets and ecosystem foundations. They include renewal of Ottawa's Venture Capital Action Plan and creation of an Innovation Growth Fund to facilitate institutional investment.
3 min read · 21 February 2017
Capital régional et coopératif Desjardins (CRCD) and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec have agreed to recommit $90 million to Capital croissance PME, a private equity fund that invests in small and medium-sized companies in Québec. The new commitment brings the fund's total capitalization to $540 million. Launched in 2010, Capital croissance PME has helped finance some 322 Québec companies, nearly 70 of which were financed last year. Caisse de dépôt earlier this month committed $500 million to two new Québec funds focused on global growth opportunities and successions.
4 min read · 21 February 2017
4 min read · 17 February 2017
Alberta Investment Management Corp (AIMCo) has entered into a strategic financing partnership with Perpetual Energy Inc (TSE: PMT), a Calgary-based oil and gas company. AIMCo agreed to provide Perpetual with $45 million in a debt-with-warrants financing and buy units that will generate gross proceeds of about $4.5 million. AIMCo said the partnership creates exposure to the company's focus on heavy oil, liquids-rich natural gas and bitumen opportunities. Perpetual said the funds raised will help refinance its debt and contribute liquidity to its 2017 capital program.
3 min read · 17 February 2017
Kineticor Resource Corp has partnered with Canadian pension fund OPTrust in the acquisition of a partially-constructed 690 megawatt cogeneration plant located near Peace River, Alberta. No financial terms were disclosed. Kineticor, which bought the plant from Shell Canada, will repurpose it as a standalone facility called the Three Creeks Power Plant. It was also announced that OPTrust will invest $125 million in Kineticor, a Calgary-based power producer focused on gas-fired generation in Canada. The proceeds will support the company's current and future growth initiatives.
2 min read · 17 February 2017
Fairfax Africa Holdings Corp (TSX: FFH, FFH.U) has closed its initial public offering and concurrent private placement deals, raising US$500 million in total. The fund, an affiliate of Canada's Fairfax Financial Holdings Ltd, will invest public equity, private equity and debt in businesses located in Africa. Concurrent with the closing, Fairfax Africa acquired an indirect 42.2 percent interest in South Africa's AFGRI Proprietary Ltd, a private agricultural services and food processing company. The acquisition included an indirect interest formerly held by Fairfax Financial.
5 min read · 17 February 2017
Canadian venture investing hit a 15-year high in 2016 thanks to numerous large-sized rounds, many of them the outcome of years of heavy lifting by local investors. VC funds invested $3.7 billion in 2016, up 36 percent from 2015, according to data from Thomson Reuters. The key variable was big financings. Fourteen rounds sized north of $50 million took $1.4 billion, or 37 percent, of the total invested. That’s a record concentration of cash in Canada’s top deals.
4 min read · 17 February 2017
U.S. early education software startup Brightwheel has raised US$10 million in a Series A financing. The round was led by GGV Capital and joined by new and existing investors, including Golden Venture Partners, a Canadian venture capital firm. Founded in 2014, San Francisco's Brightwheel provides a cloud-based management and communication platform for preschools, childcare providers, camps and afterschool programs. The company plans to use the funds raised to accelerate product development and expand its team.
3 min read · 16 February 2017
Capital régional et coopératif Desjardins (CRCD), a retail private equity and venture capital fund, generated net income of $86 million in 2016 for an annual return of 5.3 percent. Partly as a result, net assets rose to nearly $1.8 billion at the end of December. The fund reported it and partner funds committed $160 million to 109 companies last year, bringing total investments to date to $2 billion. CRCD is managed by Desjardins Business Capital régional et coopératif, the investment arm of Mouvement des caisses Desjardins, a Canadian cooperative financial group.
4 min read · 16 February 2017
