Total Energy Ventures (TEV), the corporate venturing subsidiary of oil and gas company Total, agreed to form a RMB1.5bn ($239m) fund today in partnership with two other investors.
TEV, private equity firm Cathay Capital and Hubei High Technology Investment Guiding Fund Management, a fund overseen by the local government in the Chinese province of Hubei, will each provide RMB300m for the fund, while the rest will be raised from external partners.
Cathay Smart Energy Fund will target China’s new energy sector and will invest in areas such as renewable energy, energy storage, distributed energy, smart energy, internet-connected energy and low carbon technologies.
Patrick Pouyanné, Total’s chairman and CEO, said: “China is at the forefront of 21st century energy technologies. Through this investment, we are delighted to become a part of the innovation ecosystem of the Chinese energy sector, benefiting from the knowledge of the Chinese market that Cathay Capital brings to us.
“We believe that it represents a significant growth and innovation potential in areas of new energies and sustainable development and resonates with Total’s ambition to become the responsible energy major.”
Founded in 2007, TEV’s portfolio companies include Autogrid, Stem and Sunverge. It has also committed €10m ($12.4m at current exchange rates) to Sino French Innovation Fund, the vehicle formed by Cathay Capital in 2015 to invest in China, France and the US.