Spring Lane Capital Closes Maiden Fund

12/10/19

Spring Lane Capital, a private equity firm focused on providing integrated “deployment capital” for sustainability projects in the energy, food, water and waste industries, announced today the final close of the firm’s inaugural fund, bringing total equity commitments to approximately US$156.5 million. At the same time, the firm announced three recent partnerships and investments with Atlas Organics, Aries Clean Energy, and Cambrian Innovation.

Spring Lane Capital’s unique investment model provides both project finance and growth capital for leading companies deploying “distributed assets” – those solutions using equipment or facilities smaller and less concentrated than traditional project finance can address. This dual approach helps such companies unlock additional growth while meeting their customers’ needs.

“We’re pleased to introduce Spring Lane’s unique investment model to the sustainability market,” said Spring Lane Capital Managing Partner, Christian Zabbal. “The quality of this investor base underscores the strength of our investment strategy and our team’s deep experience as long-time investors in this sector.”

Along with the closing of this inaugural fund, Spring Lane Capital also announced three new investments:

Atlas Organics, Inc., a leading commercial processor and composter providing municipal partners with regenerative solutions for diverting solid waste from landfills, announced today that it has received capital commitments of $21.4 million from Spring Lane Capital. The capital will be used as equity in future solid waste diversion projects, as well as corporate support.

In partnership with existing portfolio company Aries Clean Energy, Spring Lane Capital provided project equity as part of the $65 million financial close for the Aries Linden Biosolids Gasification Facility in New Jersey, and construction has commenced. This facility will divert 130,000 tons of biosolids from local landfills annually, and should provide the lowest cost option for biosolids disposal in the NY/NJ Metropolitan area. The Linden facility will be one of the most advanced biosolids processing facilities in the world, utilizing Aries’ patented fluidized bed technology. By using their environmentally friendly system, Aries will convert biosolids into renewable, beneficial products.

Cambrian Innovation®, a commercial provider of distributed wastewater and resource recovery solutions, announced the closing of $18 million in dedicated project finance and working equity capital with new partners including Spring Lane Capital.

This financing round will enable expansion into new market verticals for Cambrian and the acceleration of its novel service-based offering, the WEPA (Water-Energy Purchase Agreement)®. Through the WEPA, Cambrian installs and owns EcoVolt® plants, selling only treatment services, clean water, and clean energy to the customer.

“We were excited to find and partner with Spring Lane Capital, and their integrated deployment capital model has been a great fit,” said Matt Silver, Founder and CEO of Cambrian Innovation. “They’re clearly differentiated versus other firms in this market, especially for companies like Cambrian that are providing industrial-scale, distributed solutions. I’m thrilled that this capital will help Cambrian accelerate our deployment of more sustainable water systems across the country.”

The diversified investor base backing Spring Lane Capital’s funds comprise pension funds, endowments, financial institutions and family offices from across North America and Europe. These include BDC Capital, Fondaction, Fonds de solidarité FTQ, and Palomino Capital Corporation, among others.

“BDC Capital is pleased to support the growth of the sustainable economy,” said Alison Nankivell, Vice President, Fund Investments and Global Scaling. “We believe there are often funding gaps for cleantech companies, particularly around growth equity and project finance for small scale environmental projects. At BDC Capital we aim to be strong financial partners to these companies, helping them find the solutions to these gaps.”

About Spring Lane Capital:

Spring Lane Capital is a private equity firm based in Boston, MA and Montreal, QC focused on providing integrated “deployment capital” – project finance and growth capital in tandem – for smaller-scale “distributed” solutions in the energy, food, water and waste industries. Our structured financial model seeks to tap into some of the fastest growing segments of these markets, that more traditional forms of project capital cannot access due to their scale and the limitations of existing investment models. For more information, please visit springlanecapital.com.

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