Airnergize Capital, the clean technology investment platform of New GX Capital, has confirmed the final close of Fund I at R3.89-billion, with the Development Bank of Southern Africa (DBSA) committing R240-million as lead development finance institution.

Initial deployment is into commercial and industrial solar and storage assets operating in South Africa, sub-Saharan Africa and the Indian Ocean islands, with a pipeline extending across generation, transmission-related infrastructure, water and gas.

The platform is black-owned and controlled, and invests for measurable environmental and social outcomes alongside commercial returns.

The Fund I investor group comprises New GX Capital, RMB Ventures, Standard Bank, Nedbank and the DBSA, combining South Africa’s major commercial balance sheets and the country’s development finance institution into a single vehicle.

The DBSA commitment followed a full institutional due diligence of the platform, its governance and investment process.

“The DBSA’s mandate is to mobilise capital toward infrastructure that supports inclusive growth, and a platform like Airnergize does that at scale rather than one transaction at a time. Backing a fund alongside commercial investors allows us to crowd in private capital rather than compete with it, which is exactly the kind of blended approach South Africa needs if it is going to close its infrastructure investment gap,” says DBSA principal investment officer Mahlatsi Molokomme.

“Getting to R3.89-billion, with this calibre of investor around the table, tells you the market believes in what we are building. Each investor, including the DBSA, has added something different: balance sheet strength, sector expertise, a development mandate.

“We have built a platform that can turn this capital into operating infrastructure that moves the needle across energy, water and gas, and that contributes to energy security in South Africa and the region,” says New GX Capital group CE Khudusela Pitje.

Airnergize Capital sits alongside AiZAR Capital, the group’s digital infrastructure platform, and Airnergize Ventures, its early-stage clean technology and digital venture arm, within New GX Capital’s investment platform.