Altus Power is merging with a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) in a transaction that values the commercial and industrial (C&I) solar and storage developer at US$1.58 billion.
The business combination with CBRE Acquisition Holdings, a SPAC sponsored by commercial real estate service firm CBRE Group, will see Altus become a public company listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol ‘AMPS’.
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The transaction is expected to generate proceeds of up to approximately US$678 million, including a US$275 million fully committed common stock private investment in public equity (PIPE) anchored by CBRE Group, existing investors Altus Power management and Blackstone Credit, as well as new investors such as ValueAct Capital and Liberty Mutual Investments.
Connecticut-headquartered Altus Power offers locally sited solar generation, energy storage and electric vehicle charging stations across the US. Since its foundation in 2009, the firm has constructed or acquired over 200 distributed generation solar facilities totalling more than 265MW, and expects to end 2021 with a PV asset portfolio of more than 400MW.
Following completion of the deal, which is expected to take place in Q4 2021, Altus Power’s leadership will remain intact, with Lars Norell and Gregg Felton continuing as co-CEOs of the combined company.
Norell said the partnership with CBRE and backing from investment firm Blackstone will enhance the company’s ability to serve corporate and public clients with on-site clean energy generation and storage.
Blackstone last year led a US$850 million recapitalisation of Altus, and has since created a portfolio company focused on C&I distributed generation and storage assets.
“This new partnership with CBRE provides a tremendous opportunity to deliver solar and electrification services to more businesses and real estate owners looking to enhance their profitability and meet sustainability objectives,” said Rob Horn, co-head of energy investing at Blackstone Credit.
