<h3 class="MsoNormal">Co-Managers of Foresight Energy Infrastructure Partners II (FEIP II) Dan Wells and Richard Thompson recently visited Australia, meeting investors and the Foresight teams to share updates on the progression of Foresight’s flagship energy transition fund.</h3>
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Dan Wells, FEIP II Co-Manager and Partner said:&nbsp;
“It was great to visit Australia and connect with investors. We shared insights on Foresight's European energy transition strategy, highlighting recent EU policy developments, like Projects of Common Interest (PCIs), and enabling assets such as MaresConnect. We discussed the 12-15% return target, risk management, and portfolio strategies, while also exploring collaboration with the Australian team and addressing challenges like meeting SFDR Article 9 standards. We’re excited about the opportunities ahead.”
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FEIP II builds upon the success of FEIP I and intends to continue to drive the pace of Foresight's investments in the energy transition, with at least 80% of investments planned to be made in the continent alongside an allocation of up to 20% into North America and Australia. The fund is targeting a €1.25 billion raise, prioritising portfolio diversification.
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Richard Thompson, FEIP II Co-Manager and Partner, said:
“FEIP II offers a unique opportunity to participate in Europe’s rapidly advancing energy transition. With recent policy developments and a growing need for renewable-enabling infrastructure, our strategy focuses on long-duration energy storage, grid infrastructure, and other critical assets that eliminate bottlenecks. Investments into FEIP II diversify portfolios, offer exposure to high-growth energy transition sectors, and achieve meaningful sustainability impact in one of the world’s leading renewable energy markets.”
Watch the film to learn more about Skaftåsen wind farm, an asset which sits part of FEIP I's portfolio:&nbsp;
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<div class="mceNonEditable embeditem" data-embed-url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-upMWRz1u3A&amp;t=13s" data-embed-height="432" data-embed-width="900" data-embed-constrain="true"><iframe width="768" height="432" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/-upMWRz1u3A?start=13&amp;feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" title="Introducing Skaftåsen Windfarm"></iframe></div>
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Learn more about FEIP II’s strategy and take a look at our case studies: <a href="https://www.foresight.group/feip">Foresight Energy Infrastructure Partners | Foresight Group</a>
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Overview of FEIP:
In 2020 the first FEIP fund was launched - a diversified and differentiated energy transition strategy. FEIP I exceeded its fundraising target by 70%, raising €851.4m into the fund itself and representing a total capital pool in excess of €1 billion with mobilisation of co-investment to-date. The fund has since gone on to fully allocate its capital to 15 investments in 9 countries across Europe. FEIP I's portfolio includes both conventional renewable energy assets such as the Skaftåsen wind farm in Sweden which utilises the largest onshore turbines in the world, and also large-scale renewable-enabling infrastructure projects such as MaresConnect, a development-stage 750 MW interconnector cable which will connect the electricity transmission networks in Ireland and the United Kingdom, enabling the bi-directional flow of power, responding to the varying supply and demand dynamics between the two nations.
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Take a look at our latest thought leadership: <a href="https://www.foresight.group/deep-decarbonisation-of-energy-systems-foresights-diversified-approach-to-portfolio-construction">Deep Decarbonisation of Energy Systems: Foresight's diversified approach to portfolio construction</a>

FEIP II Co-Managers Dan Wells and Richard Thompson Visit Australia

Co-Managers of FEIP II Dan Wells and Richard Thompson Visit Australia 

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<li>Revenues now over £20m after key contract wins driving strong organic growth</li>
<li>Backed by leading smaller companies’ investor Foresight Group, Fieldway is a leading fire safety contractor to the social housing sector and private sector asset owners</li>
<li>More than 40 high-rise residential blocks have been made Fire Safety Act compliant</li>
<li>Since investment in 2018 Fieldway’s employee numbers have more than doubled to over 100</li>
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Liverpool, December 2024: Foresight Group LLP (“Foresight”) a leading regional private equity and infrastructure investment manager, announces that portfolio company Merseyside-based Fieldway Group (“Fieldway”) has achieved a record revenue of £20 million in its 25th year in business.
Established by entrepreneur Brian Murphy in 1999, Fieldway based at Paramount Business Park in Huyton, Knowsley has experienced strong growth as it has transformed from a start-up into a national contractor, a move that has seen employee numbers double to more than 100. &nbsp;
Originally a supplier to the construction industry, Fieldway is now a key fire safety partner to the social housing sector, carrying out a critically important role in ensuring residents’ safety.&nbsp;
In response to the changes brought by the Fire Safety Act and the lasting impact of the Grenfell tragedy, Fieldway continues to deliver multi-discipline works in high-rise blocks for clients like PTOL, Wigan Council, Northwards Housing and Wythenshawe Housing.
With the expansion of its passive fire department, Fieldway has developed significant expertise for fire safety, electrical works and project management, offering a holistic approach to meet all their clients' needs with over 40 high rise blocks made fully compliant to date.
A series of major contract wins in 2023 resulted in revenues nearly doubling from £8.3million to £15.1million, while a new record was achieved in the year to the end of March 2024 when the £20m milestone was achieved. Further growth is expected over the next three years with the Company targeting £40 million in revenues.
Fieldway’s strong performance and high rankings across all national social housing frameworks has been further strengthened by its latest award onto the Procurement For Housing Active and Passive Fire Safety Frameworks, where it ranked No 1 on 20 lots across the UK for the next four years.
Brian Murphy, Founder and CEO of Fieldway, said: “I am incredibly proud of what Fieldway has achieved over the past 25 years. From our beginnings as a small local supplier to becoming a national presence in the fire safety industry, our journey has been remarkable. Our team’s dedication, innovation, and commitment to safety have been key to our success, and I’m excited for what the future holds.”
Multiple contracts have been won with Together Housing - one of the leading social landlords in the north of England - to undertake fire door replacements, compartmentation works and fire alarm installations across their stock.
Beyond the North West, where Fieldway has its roots, contracts have been won in the East Midlands for PA Housing, Newark &amp; Sherwood Council, South Derbyshire Council and Derby Homes, while a long-term passive fire contract was won in the East of England with South Cambridge Council.
Reflecting the growing diversity of the company’s portfolio, Fieldway has recently begun delivering fire safety services for clients including Kent Community Health NHS Foundation Trust, North West Ambulance Service and media organisation Bloomberg. &nbsp; This success has enabled Fieldway to enhance its commitment to training and development and the Company now invests over £10,000 a year. &nbsp; Fiona Hatch, Investment Director at Foresight Group, added: “Fieldway is an outstanding company to work alongside. Brian and his team are true experts, using their extensive experience to improve fire safety standards across the country. It’s been a privilege to support their impressive sector and geographical growth. Their recent contract wins position the company for continued success and expansion in the future.”
One satisfied Fieldway client is PTOL, whose Finance Director Peter Emsden said: “Since the start of the contract, Fieldway have consistently delivered high-quality work, meeting all deadlines while prioritising safety and minimising disruption. Their staff are approachable, adaptable, and go the extra mile to ensure the needs of the contract and residents are met."
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ENDS

Fieldway Group hits new heights as it celebrates 25th anniversary with record revenues

<h3 class="MsoNormal">Foresight’s commitment to sustainability and knowledge sharing was on full display during the recent Foresight Engage event held in Sydney. The event brought together leaders from across Foresight’s infrastructure portfolio to recognise improvements and share best practices.</h3>
Representatives from Port Hedland International Airport, Team Sustainability, Zenith Energy, Kinetic, Solstice Energy joined the event. It kicked off with an evening of networking, highlighting and discussing sustainability initiatives. These included increases in GRESB scores, impactful work enhancing gender diversity and new innovative health and safety measures in reducing driving speed-related exposures by Solstice Energy. Zenith Energy shared an update on&nbsp;a groundbreaking hybrid energy solution that integrates 60% renewable energy into an off-grid mining operation. A big step forward for decarbonising Australia’s mining sector.
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Zenith Energy is one of Australia’s leading developers and operators of bespoke off-grid and urban microgrids, with excess of 500 MW, capacity under contract or in-development. Foresight has actively supported the growth of Zenith since its acquisition in 2020 by leveraging its in house renewables, project structuring and financing relationships, expertise and experience.
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Watch the film:
<div class="mceNonEditable embeditem" data-embed-url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rrmhTA7wB-Q" data-embed-height="38882" data-embed-width="800" data-embed-constrain="true"><iframe width="800" height="450" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/rrmhTA7wB-Q?feature=oembed" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" referrerpolicy="strict-origin-when-cross-origin" allowfullscreen="allowfullscreen" title="Zenith Energy"></iframe></div>
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Knowledge Sharing at the Engage Conference
Day two was all about learning with over 20 sustainability professionals and health and safety experts from 17 portfolio companies present.&nbsp;
Ed Lloyd, Head of Foresight Australia, opened the event by welcoming guests before introducing Andrew Heyden, Director at Foresight. Andrew provided an overview of the different approaches to sustainable investing, including ethical investing, exclusionary practices, and impact-focused strategies. He also explored key engagement priorities for investors, such as climate change, human rights, and diversity and inclusion.
Ase Bergstedt, Global Head of Sustainability and Sustainable Finance, followed with a presentation on the company’s global sustainability approach. She underscored the need for consistent ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) improvements across all assets, reinforcing the company’s commitment to sustainability at every level of operation.
During the GRESB Benchmarking Review, Stephanie Bolt from Team Sustainability shared insights into the company’s GRESB performance. She highlighted strategies for continuous improvement and provided practical advice for enhancing ESG benchmarks.
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The event featured thematic workshops designed to promote best practices. These interactive sessions focused on safety culture, diversity initiatives, and governance strategies. Ben Charles from Solstice, Angela Leung from Kinetic, and Catherine Trengrove from Foresight led the discussions, offering valuable insights and practical solutions.
Environmental innovation was a key focus of the event, with presentations from Dominic Da Cruz of Zenith and Marnie Hope of Flinders Ports. They showcased solutions in energy and environmental sustainability, demonstrating the industry’s commitment to forward-thinking, eco-friendly practices.
With a focus on knowledge sharing, peer reviews, and networking, the initiative empowers companies to achieve higher standards in sustainability and safety.
Find out more about our Australian experience by visiting our website <a href="https://www.foresight.group/australia">here.</a>
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Australia Engage Event

Celebrating Sustainability Initiatives at Foresight’s Australia Engage Event 

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<li style="font-weight: bold;">Backed by Foresight’s Ventures team since 2020, US based Ayar Labs is the leader in optical interconnect solutions which maximise the efficiency of AI infrastructure</li>
<li style="font-weight: bold;">Ayar Labs has secured funding to continue to address the urgent growing need for scalable, cost-effective AI infrastructure</li>
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London, December, 2024: Foresight Group LLP (“Foresight”) a leading venture capital, private equity and infrastructure investment manager, announces that portfolio company Ayar Labs (“Ayar Labs” or “the Company”), has completed a $155million funding round that values the business at more than $1billion.
Ayar Labs has secured funding to continue to address the urgent need for scalable, cost-effective AI infrastructure. Capital was secured from a number of high quality investors including Light Street Capital, Advent Global Opportunities, AMD Ventures, Intel Capital and NVIDIA.
Ayar Labs is the leader in optical interconnect solutions that move data at the speed of AI. Recognising that the complexity and size of AI models are increasing at a rate that traditional interconnect technology cannot handle, the Company has developed the industry’s first optical I/O solution that enables customers to maximize the compute efficiency and performance of growing AI infrastructure, while reducing costs, latency and power consumption therefore dramatically improving profitability metrics for AI applications.
Based on open standards and optimised for both AI training and inference, Ayar Labs’ optical I/O solution is backed by a robust ecosystem that enables it to integrate smoothly into AI systems at scale. Ayar Labs was founded in 2015.
Ayar Labs first in-package optical I/O solution replaces electrical I/O that is standards-based, commercial-ready, and optimised for AI training and inference. &nbsp; Mark Wade, CEO of Ayar Labs comments: “We are delighted to close the round and we’d like to express our thanks to Foresight Ventures and their international team including Richard Lewis (London) and Joe Raffa (Silicon Valley) for their ongoing support since their original investment in 2020.”&nbsp;
Richard Lewis, Managing Director of Foresight's Venture team comments: “Foresight would like to congratulate Mark Wade and the team for their exceptional work in closing this funding round and we look forward to supporting the company in the coming years.”
ENDS
Notes to Editors
For more information contact: Chris Barry, Influential: Barry@thisisinfluential.com / +44 (0)7733 103 693 Lucy Sherwood, Foresight Group: marketing@foresightgroup.eu / +44 (0)20 3667 8100
About Foresight’s Ventures Strategy Foresight's Ventures team makes equity investments into fast-growing companies that are building some of the most exciting deep tech, hard tech and enterprise software. It is part of Foresight Group’s award-winning Private Equity division, which specialises in growth &amp; buyout, venture capital and private credit. Its investment team is based across the UK and Ireland, with venture partners based in the US, Israel and UAE.&nbsp; Foresight Group, with over £12 billion AUM, invests to support the energy transition, decarbonise industry, enhance nature recovery and realise the economic potential and positive impact of ambitious companies.

Foresight's portfolio company Ayar Labs has completed a $155million funding round that values the business at more than $1billion

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Fieldway Group hits new heights as it celebrates 25th anniversary with record revenues

Celebrating Sustainability Initiatives at Foresight’s Australia Engage Event

Foresight's portfolio company Ayar Labs has completed a $155million funding round that values the business at more than $1billion

Co-Managers of FEIP II Dan Wells and Richard Thompson Visit Australia

Fieldway Group hits new heights as it celebrates 25th anniversary with record revenues

Celebrating Sustainability Initiatives at Foresight’s Australia Engage Event

Foresight's portfolio company Ayar Labs has completed a $155million funding round that values the business at more than $1billion

Co-Managers of FEIP II Dan Wells and Richard Thompson Visit Australia

Fieldway Group hits new heights as it celebrates 25th anniversary with record revenues

Celebrating Sustainability Initiatives at Foresight’s Australia Engage Event

Foresight's portfolio company Ayar Labs has completed a $155million funding round that values the business at more than $1billion

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