The Investment Management Corporation of Ontario (IMCO) announced today that it has invested in Bioenergy Infrastructure Group (BIG), a UK-based firm that focuses on extracting energy from waste (EfW) through an aggregated platform. IMCO acquired its interest through a co-investment with Infracapital, a UK-based infrastructure investor. Infracapital, together with its investors, will hold majority control of BIG.

EfW involves the treatment of waste that is processed into final products (i.e. energy, biogas, scrap metal, etc.) for either reuse, or as products which can then be landfilled. Following the various forms of treatment, the residual material can then be re-used or sold. BIG was established in 2015 with a view of creating a dedicated portfolio of EfW assets, targeting a generation capacity of more than 200MW.

“This is an exciting opportunity for IMCO in an industry that is creating innovative solutions for renewable energy,” said Jean Michel, Chief Investment Officer of IMCO. “This investment aligns with our strategy to seek infrastructure opportunities with experienced, greenfield investors, while providing our clients with long-term, stable revenue generation.”

Over the past decade, the UK government has set priorities to promote reuse and recycling as landfills there near capacity. BIG’s EfW facilities are well positioned to benefit from this waste treatment capacity gap and are strategically located across the country to meet the demand.

BIG benefits from renewable energy incentives put in place by the government. The legacy Renewable Obligation scheme provides support for electricity generated from renewable sources and BIG receives renewable obligation certificates (ROCs), which energy suppliers can then purchase from BIG (equivalent to the amount of energy supplied). The firm also derives revenue from energy generation purchase agreements and gate fees, associated with its facilities that process refuse-derived fuels, and other ancillary sources.