Alantra has launched Horizon Secondaries, a €120 million ($140 million) vehicle seeded with ten growth companies bought from Shell Ventures, in a sign that oil majors’ climate venture portfolios are starting to change hands.
The Madrid-based financial services group announced the fund as a new secondaries strategy within its energy transition business. The opening deal gives it stakes in ten growth-stage companies across North America, Europe and Asia. They work in sustainable mobility, low-carbon technologies, electrification, digitalisation and emissions management.
CommonWealth Investments is the anchor investor. Several international institutions have also committed, including Blue Earth Capital, according to Addleshaw Goddard, which advised Alantra on the fund structure and the acquisition. The names of the ten companies haven’t been disclosed.
Why secondaries, and why now
Alantra’s case is that the energy transition market has matured. A growing number of established companies now have shareholders who want liquidity, while the businesses themselves still need capital to grow. Secondary transactions let a new investor step in at that point, buying existing stakes rather than funding a fresh round.
The firm already runs Klima, a €210 million late-stage venture fund that backs energy-tech companies in their early growth phase. Horizon Secondaries sits alongside it, so Alantra can now invest across both primary and secondary markets. The firm said Horizon is the first of several planned vehicles under the new strategy.
Patricia Pascual-Ramsay, chief executive of Alantra Asset Management, said: “The launch of this new business line is an important step in the continued development of Alantra Asset Management and reinforces Energy Transition as one of our strategic growth areas. The market has reached a point where a growing number of high-quality companies are becoming accessible through secondary transactions, creating a compelling long-term opportunity for investors.”
What the sale says about Shell
For Shell, the disposal is a trim rather than an exit. Quennie Co, managing partner at Shell Ventures, said: “Alantra’s focus on high-growth businesses and its global footprint mean it is well-placed to support these companies as they continue to scale. Today’s announcement, which represents a small proportion of the Shell Ventures’ quality portfolio, reflects our strategic focus on concentrating our support where we can have the greatest impact.”
Still, the transaction is a useful data point. Oil and gas companies built sizeable climate tech venture books over the past decade. As those holdings age, some are now being recycled into specialist funds run by financial investors. New Private Markets reported that two long-serving corporate venture investors have joined Alantra alongside the portfolio, though that report sits behind a paywall.
The open question for buyers is pricing. Alantra is betting that more corporate and fund sellers will follow Shell, and that mature climate assets can be bought at a discount to their growth prospects. Whether that holds as more portfolios come to market will decide how quickly the follow-on vehicles arrive.
