Quercus Assets Selection is launching its third fund in the renewable energy sector, an Italian wind fund aimed at institutional investors both in Italy and internationally.

Investors will be required to invest a minimum of €10 million (US$11.2 million) to gain access to the fund, which will build a geographically diverse portfolio of Italian wind farms that have been operational for two to five years, each generating a minimum of 20/25MW of electricity.

The fund will initially look to invest in existing plants in Central and Southern Italy and it will have an investment horizon of 15 years, with an annual Internal Rate of Return (IRR) of between 9% and 11% expected over the lifetime of the plants.

Diego Biasi, co-founder of Quercus commented:

"Quercus funds provide stable and predictable cash flows over a long duration and our investment strategies seek to protect against inflation and traditional financial market volatility. Italy possesses the 7th largest wind energy sector in the world and the market remains highly fragmented. The largest competitor holds a market share of only 13%, and approximately 50% of installed wind power is in the hands of small operators. The Italian market is therefore about to enter a phase of consolidation which presents some very interesting opportunities for Quercus."

The first Quercus Renewable Energy Fund was launched in 2010. The fund specialises in photovoltaic plants in Italy and currently owns a portfolio of 11 facilities, which generate almost 80MW of power.

The second Quercus Renewable Energy Fund, which continues to invest in new plants, was launched in 2011 and seeks to invest in multi-technology plants across Europe. The fund has already developed a portfolio of 13 plants which are diverse in terms of technology and geography and generate more than 120MW of power.