Opus is pleased to have advised Axil and its shareholders on its sale to TowerBrook, a purpose-driven investment firm. TowerBrook has invested in Axil through its Impact strategy, TowerBrook Delta, which supports high-potential companies with impact at their core.
Axil provides waste management services to complex manufacturing clients. Its innovative resource management solutions help businesses reduce waste at source, improve recycling rates, and lower operational costs.
With TowerBrook’s backing, Axil is poised for growth, strengthening its market presence and expanding its service offering. This partnership will drive smarter waste management solutions and support businesses in achieving their sustainability goals, while creating long-term value for clients.
This landmark deal marks a significant development in the UK Commercial & Industrial waste market and highlights the strength of Opus’ circular economy expertise within its Energy Transition & Climate Change sector practice.
For further information please contact: Stuart Schofield, Thalia Ilsen Nunn and Ed Williamson.
Opus is pleased to have advised Future Biogas, one of the largest anaerobic digestion (“AD”) plant developers and biogas producers in the UK, on its acquisition of a 51% stake in a portfolio of six operational gas-to-grid AD facilities, with a combined gas output of 333GWh, from JLEN Environmental Assets Group Limited (“JLEN”) for £68.1 million. £30 million will be funded by 3i Infrastructure, with the balance funded by Future Biogas from committed debt facilities.
Future Biogas is well-acquainted with these assets, having originally developed five of the six plants and operated each for an average of eight years. As the majority owner, Future Biogas will now have the opportunity to implement investment-led enhancements that the management team has already identified. Since 3i Infrastructure’s investment in Future Biogas in 2023, the company has successfully transitioned from a third-party plant operator to an asset owner and developer, with a pipeline of new sites totalling 1.3TWh.
The transaction adds to the strong track record of Opus’ Energy Transition & Climate Change sector practice in relation to Biogas and CCS, following its advice on the sale of Future Biogas to 3i Infrastructure plc last year.
This represents another market leading transaction and a further example of Opus’ expertise relating to the energy transition. For further information please contact: John McElroy, Richard Morse and Dilesh Patel.
Opus is pleased to have advised Rendesco, the leading clean heat network developer and owner-operator, on its £6m equity investment from Clean Growth Fund, Eurazeo’s Smart City fund and Aviva Ventures.
Rendesco works with many of the UK’s leading property developers to design and install low-carbon and low-cost ground source heat networks. The funding will enable Rendesco to rapidly expand its operations and further develop its solutions in the UK and European energy markets.
The transaction adds to the strong track record of Opus’ Energy Transition & Climate Change sector practice in relation to decarbonising heat and domestic energy efficiency, following its advice on the sale of district heating developer and contractor Pinnacle Power (now Hemiko) to DIF Capital Partners last year.
For further information please contact: Stuart Schofield and Dilesh Patel.
We are delighted to feature leaders reshaping industries, and scaling their business globally, in our Opus Innovators & Founders Series.
Orlin, what convinced you to initiate Ampeco in 2018?
In 2018, while researching an electric vehicle car-sharing project, I faced the challenge of figuring out how to charge the fleet. At the time, there was no existing charging infrastructure to depend on, creating a need to develop our own. Initially, I assumed this would primarily involve hardware and contacted various vendors to explore our options. However, I quickly realized that managing EV charging operations effectively would also require a sophisticated software platform.
As I dug deeper, I was intrigued by the interaction of IT, energy, and mobility, each with its distinct challenges and opportunities. The more I explored, the more I recognized the potential impact of the solutions we could develop for the EV charging sector.
Drawing on nearly a decade of experience in software development with our current CTO, where we crafted software solutions for startups and large enterprises, I decided to pivot toward my newfound interest in the EV charging sector. Our combined expertise in software development became the cornerstone for AMPECO. We set out to build a robust EV charging platform that would enable EV charging operators to launch, scale, and manage their businesses efficiently.
What are the biggest opportunities and challenges to CPO software providers at the moment?
The fast pace of development in the EV charging industry, dictated by market dynamics, technological advancements, and regulatory shifts, creates significant challenges but also remarkable opportunities for CPO software providers.
As a global player serving customers in over 50 countries, one of our key challenges is meeting diverse use cases and complying with varying regulatory demands across different markets. At the same time, our goal is to identify and implement best-practice approaches that effectively meet these varied needs. To accomplish this, we have organized our team and processes to collect and evaluate insights from the market and customers and quickly incorporate this knowledge into our product development roadmap.
What will Ampeco focus on with the funds raised on the Series A in 2022?
When we raised our Series A at the end of 2022, it was to further the advancement of our EV charging management platform and increase our market presence in Europe and the US.
In line with this strategy, we have established new offices in France, the Netherlands, Germany and the US. We have continued to invest in the development of new features on our platform, increasing the value for our customers – from billing & payments, operations & maintenance to energy management – advancing our offering in many areas.
The feedback from our clients have been overwhelmingly positive. We have seen our existing customers leveraging the capabilities of our platform to achieve remarkable growth.
Moreover, we have become the preferred choice for several prominent EV charging networks, who have switched to our platform to grow and scale their operations more efficiently.
What would be your advice to someone starting an EV Charging or Mobility software company?
Having founded several companies, including my first one during high school, I have learned a lot through both successes and mistakes, and I am still learning. However, there are a few things that I am convinced make a big difference to your chances of succeeding in starting a new business.
First, market opportunity is crucial. It must be significant, especially if you aim to make a global impact or build a billion-dollar business. The scale of the market opportunity should align with your aspirations.
Secondly, the founding team is critical. It is about understanding why you and your founding team are the right people to capitalize on this market opportunity. Be clear on the unique skills and experiences you possess that will drive your success.
Thirdly, especially in a sector like EV charging or any emerging industry, it’s important to have a solid understanding of the market dynamics and be able to envision future trends, not just the status quo. It is very different doing business in an established industry and in one that is changing rapidly. Industries in flux, like ours, demand a strategic approach that accounts for rapid changes in market dynamics, technology, and regulations. In our case, we have tailored our strategy and business model for where we anticipate the industry will be by 2040. It is all about navigating current changes with a clear vision of the future.
Opus is pleased to have advised Sonaura, a pioneering provider of renewable energy solutions for industrial power users, on securing a strategic growth investment from Eurazeo’s Smart City Fund. This partnership supports Sonaura’s mission to deliver resilient, cost-effective, and 100% renewable energy across Europe.
Sonaura’s turnkey offsite private wire solutions offer industrial power users a reliable source of green energy with long-term price stability, enhancing energy resilience while meeting rising sustainability demands. This new funding will enable Sonaura to accelerate its expansion, delivering transformative energy solutions that reduce both operational costs and carbon emissions for industrial clients across Europe.
This transaction reinforces Opus’ strong track record in the Energy Transition & Climate Change sector, demonstrating our commitment to driving decarbonisation and enhancing energy efficiency across industries. We’re proud to have supported Sonaura in securing this impactful investment, advancing the future of sustainable energy.
For further information, please contact John McElroy and Tom Rahman.
Ed Pateman-Jones, CEO and Founder of Sonaura, said:
“The Opus team were great to work with, helping us every step of the way turning our business plan into reality, backed by a high-quality investor in Eurazeo.”
Opus is delighted to announce that a senior banker in the energy transition and mobility space, Dominique Houde, is joining Opus as a partner.
Energy Transition and Climate Change is a core sector for Opus, one of the first corporate finance firms covering the sector comprehensively.
Dominique has more than 20 years of M&A experience while at Merrill Lynch, ABN AMRO/RBS, and Improved Corporate Finance, where he was involved in a large number of key mobility and clean energy transactions, bringing global investors to these companies. Dominique was also a co-founder of Autotech Ventures, the first independent VC firm in the automotive technology space based in Silicon Valley, and held senior roles in EV charging software and infrastructure companies.
Dominique stated: “Opus Corporate Finance has built a very impressive deal flow and significant expertise in the overall Energy Transition space, from software to renewable power, clean fuels, batteries and renewable infrastructure transactions among others, right at the heart of London, a major centre of capital flows. I am looking forward to furthering the reach of Opus in the mobility and infrastructure areas in this ever-integrated space, as deal volume and size scale up in the years to come.”
John McElroy, co-head of Energy Transition & Climate Change at Opus added: “We are delighted to have attracted such an experienced sector banker to Opus and look forward to working with Dominique as we broaden and deepen our well established Energy Transition & Climate Change practice. Dominique’s expertise in e-mobility in particular builds on and complements Opus’ strong track record in that vertical.”
Opus’ partnership within Mergers Alliance, a leading global network of financial advisory boutiques, enables us to connect clients with perspectives and opportunities across the world.
Since 2006, Opus has worked with clients across a spectrum of specialisms, geographies and sectors, and was one of the first Corporate Finance firms to develop a sizeable energy transition practice. Whatever your corporate strategy, short-term needs and stakeholder challenges, we are focused on achieving your goals.
Dominique Houde is a Partner at Opus Corporate Finance, advising companies and investors on the fast-growing Mobility and Energy Transition sectors.
Uniquely, Dominique has gained experience and relationships not only in banking/M&A, but also in the venture capital field and at leading growth companies in the sector globally.
Key transactions include several market defining deals such as the majority sale of Fortum’s EV Charging business to InfraCapital, the Series C Fundraise for Germany’s The Mobility House (Vehicle to Grid technology), advising Vortex Energy in acquiring a stake in EO Charging, the sale of Allego to Infrastructure fund Meridiam, the sale of The UK’s PodPoint to EDF, and among others the acquisition of a majority stake in Nissan by Renault.
Dominique brings over 20 years of experience in Mergers & Acquisitions advisory. He spent a significant amount of his career at Merrill Lynch and ABN AMRO/RBS, where he headed their Global Automotive practice.
Dominique also co-founded Silicon Valley-based Autotech Ventures, the first independent automotive technology venture capital fund globally. Prior to joining Opus, Dominique held senior management roles in leading technology mobility growth companies.
Dominique holds an MSc degree in Finance from the London School of Economics and a Political Science and a BCom degree from McGill University.
Opus is pleased to have advised the shareholders of Pinnacle Power Limited on its sale to independent infrastructure fund manager DIF Capital Partners.
Pinnacle Power is a leading developer and turnkey contractor in the UK district heating market, and has delivered over 100 projects since its inception in 2012. District heating networks link industrial and commercial heat sources with nearby customers, providing a cost-effective, low-carbon alternative to traditional gas boilers in urban locations.
The acquisition by DIF will accelerate and fund Pinnacle Power’s development and ownership of district heating networks across the UK.
This is a landmark deal in the UK district heating sector and a further example of the strength of Opus’ Energy Transition & Climate Change practice.
For further information please contact: Stuart Schofield, John McElroy and Dilesh Patel.