Projects related to innovative solutions for the energy sector responding to market challenges in areas of TAURON Group activity will become the focus of interest of the new EEC Magenta fund. The Polish Development Fund established by TAURON and the CVC National Research and Development Centre (managed by PFR) - the Corporate Venture Capital (CVC) type fund, is the first entity of this kind on the Polish market.
TAURON will be a participant of two funds created under the PFR Starter programmes - FIZ and BRIdge VC / PFR NCBR CVC. This will enable TAURON to provide a multi-stage support for innovative companies, among others through ensuring a possibility to participate in acceleration programmes, investment in start-ups under the PFR Starter FIZ, or providing consecutive financing rounds under the PFR NCBR CVC. The latter was established under the Fund of CVC Funds launched by the NCBR last year, where the NCBR funds make a half of PLN 880 million.
- The establishment of the CVC fund is the next element of building the ecosystem of cooperation with innovative enterprises in TAURON Group. We expect that the new fund will be beneficial for the Group owing to the concentration of activity on investment in innovative companies which will potentially support the long-term development of the Group – says Filip Grzegorczyk President of the Management Board of TAURON Polska Energia. - The identification of the most interesting enterprises offering innovative solutions in a broadly understood energy industry will contribute both to the development of internal competence in the scope of management and cooperation with investment funds and to the effective commercialisation of innovative projects, among others in our production portfolio - the President adds.
The target capitalisation of the fund established under the PFR Starter FIZ will amount to PLN 50 million, whereas in the case of the fund established under the PFR NCBR CVC - it will reach PLN 160 million. The share of TAURON in the funds will not exceed 25% and 49%, respectively.
- One of the strategic goals of the PFR is the development of the market for financing young innovative companies in Poland, so-called venture capital market. It is an important element of building the new 4.0 economy. While implementing the Start in Poland programme, we are building a complete ecosystem which will turn Poland into an innovation hub of European importance. The EEC Magenta Fund is the first project of this type on the Polish market. It is created by the profession management team with experience gained in the Silicon Valley. Regardless the sources of capital, the management team will invest on a market basis, aiming to maximise the value of companies in which it will invest and the value of the portfolio for investors – says Paweł Borys, President of the Management Board of the Polish Development Fund.
- By taking brave decisions, however, well-considered and consistent with our other activities, we have become pioneers in introducing innovative solutions in the system of financing innovation in Poland. While creating the FoF CVC, we laid down the foundation for the system of supporting the development of the R&D projects by corporate venture capital funds, so far missing on the Polish market. The launch of EEC Magenta is the first important step on the way to create several professional CVC funds effectively investing in high risk projects - says Maciej Chorowski, director of the National Research and Development Centre.
The funds created under the PFR NCBR CVC and PFR Starter programmes will be managed by the professional management entity - EEC Magenta independent of investors.
The selection of forms co-financed from the PFR Ventures funds while creating the CVC fund is mainly associated with a possibility to take advantage of the PFR experience in fund management and capital diversification, consequently mitigating the risk on TAURON’s side.
In accordance with the assumptions of the new fund, the growth in the value of portfolio companies will be accomplished through supplying financial resources required for the development of projects.
At the same time, the intention of the fund is to supply so-called smart money under the investment, i.e. providing the substantive support in the scope of creating competence related to the development of the venture. Emphasis will be placed on strategic planning and management as well as strengthening the relationships within the sectors to which the products and services of portfolio companies will be addressed.
Through activities of the TAURON Magenta company or participation in the Pilot Maker acceleration programme, TAURON has already engaged in numerous projects in the framework of the Open Innovation model. In this context, creating of the CVC fund is the next element of building the ecosystem for the cooperation with innovative enterprises. One of the priorities of TAURON Group is to create a new model for the development of innovation and new businesses. The key element of this model is the establishment of the CVC fund dealing with investment in innovative enterprises at various stages of their development - from the seed phase to the growth and expansion phase).
