French investment manager Epopee Gestion and energy company Enervivo have created a financing platform dedicated to biomethane injection projects in France, with €10 million in initial funding primarily provided by Epopee Gestion.
The platform, developed alongside project developer Urbeez, aims to finance approximately ten biomethane projects over the next three to four years. It will focus mainly on brownfield conversions, in which existing biogas cogeneration units are retrofitted to inject biomethane directly into the gas grid rather than generating electricity on site. Greenfield projects may also be considered.
An initial investment has been earmarked for a unit in La Chapelle, Charente, with a capacity of 25 GWh per year and commissioning expected in autumn 2027. The platform will primarily target agricultural anaerobic digestion units with capacities of between 15 and 40 GWh per year.
The venture reflects a shift in the French biomethane sector's commercial landscape. While some projects in Urbeez's existing portfolio operate under feed-in tariff arrangements, the platform intends to rely primarily on biogas production certificates and may also make use of biogas purchase agreements — newer market-based mechanisms that are gaining ground as alternatives to state-backed tariffs.
Sylvie Perrin, partner at law firm De Gaulle Fleurance, which advised Epopee Gestion and Enervivo on the transaction, said: "This transaction illustrates a new stage in the development of the biomethane sector in France. The conversion of existing units to injection allows for the acceleration of production capacity deployment, while the development of new economic models, particularly around biogas production certificates, opens up new financing opportunities."
