Welsh hydro project set to flow with Albion backing

Albion Ventures has made its first hydro investment by backing Welsh-based developer Dragon Hydro.


Albion Ventures has made its first hydro investment by backing Welsh-based developer Dragon Hydro.

Hydro energy engineering firm Dragon Hydro has secured £1.3 million of investment from VCT investor Albion Ventures.

The deal is the seventh case of a renewable energy investment by Albion, and Dragon Hydro now joins Infinite Renewables and Engensa in the environmental section of its portfolio.

The funding will be used to develop a single 300kW hydropower scheme on the Afon Cadair River in the county of Gwynedd in Wales.

According to a statement, the Welsh site will benefit from the Feed-in-Tariff government regime and will begin to generate electricity in the third quarter of 2013 with a goal of providing energy to 300 households.

Michael Kaplan, partner at Albion Ventures, says that the investment firm is looking to diversify its holdings across a range of renewable energy technologies.

He adds, ‘[Dragon Hydro] demonstrates a very high standard of engineering excellence and commitment, having spent a considerable effort on planning and obtaining all required consents.

‘Hydro power is the oldest renewable technology and we are very pleased that the government continues to support small-scale hydro through Feed-in-Tariffs.’

Albion Ventures, formerly Close Brothers Group before a 2009 management acquisition, currently has £290 million under management and typically invests between £1 million and £10 million.

Hunter Ruthven

Bernard Williamson

Hunter was the Editor for GrowthBusiness.co.uk from 2012 to 2014, before moving on to Caspian Media Ltd to be Editor of Real Business.

Related Topics

Venture capital funding