Millennium Finance launches $200M clean energy fund

Dubai-based Millennium Finance Corporation is raising a $200 million clean energy fund and opening an office in India.

The firm expects to close the first $150 million of the cleantech fund by March 2009. Millennium plans to partner on the fund with Silicon Valley venture capital investment bank Advanced Equities, which specializes in late-stage private equity finance for technology companies.

The Clean Energy Fund is expected to invest in renewable energy technologies such as wind, solar, energy efficiency and biofuels. The fund is planned for late-stage firms with low technology risk and established revenue streams.

Millennium is raising two other, $200 million funds to invest in sub-Saharan Africa and real estate. All three funds are expected to close by the middle of 2009.

The new India office is part of a push to establish a presence in Saudi Arabia, Nigeria other fast-growing markets.

Millennium officials said that it was a good time to invest because the economic downturn has caused companies to become undervalued.

Similarly, GE Energy Financial Services and Epuron Singapore yesterday said they planned to established the Asia-Pacific region's first renewable energy private trust with $250 million to be invested in the next five years in wind, solar, small hydroelectric, biogas and biomass to capitalize on the economic climate (see Renewable Energy Trust Asia launches with $250M for energy tech).