NextEnergy Group inks first-of-a-kind Corporate Power Purchase Agreement in legal sector with DLA Piper

London, January 28th 2022 – NextEnergy Group, a leading player in the global solar sector, is pleased to announce that it has signed a Corporate Power Purchase Agreement (“PPA”) with DLA Piper, a global law firm, making this the first transaction of this kind in the legal sector.

DLA Piper will be the first global law firm to benefit from a corporate PPA which will be powered by a 13MW solar asset, to be built and operated in Somerset, England, by NextEnergy Group.  Once the plant is energised, the renewable power will be supplied directly to the national grid and thereby connected ‘virtually’ to DLA Piper, powering 15 European and UK offices that are taking part in the project. The PPA is a major milestone in DLA Piper’s journey to decarbonise and halve its greenhouse gas emissions in absolute terms by 2030.

This agreement sets another benchmark for NextEnergy Group as we continue to help large corporates step up to tackle their climate change agenda, decarbonise their carbon footprints and bring security to their power price.

Ross Grier, UK Managing Director of NextEnergy Capital, added:
“The corporate PPA market continues to strengthen. Corporate PPAs will form an important component of the way companies seek to decarbonise over the next decade and it’s a pleasure being at the forefront of this with DLA Piper in the legal sector.  NextEnergy Group is a leading developer and asset owner in the UK solar sector and it’s great to supplement our portfolio with this relationship with DLA Piper.”

Natasha Luther-Jones, DLA Piper’s International Head of Sustainability and ESG and Global Co-Chair Energy and Natural Resources, said:
“DLA Piper’s collaboration with this to be built solar farm is yet another illustration of our commitment to reducing our carbon footprint through innovative solutions. We are the first law firm to enter into a corporate PPA so this project is a true statement of our ambition to be one of the most impactful business law firms for sustainability.”

Simon Levine, Global Co-CEO at DLA Piper, said:
“Sustainability and innovation are both fundamental to how we operate within DLA Piper and this project is a perfect illustration of both of these at work.

 

About NextEnergy Group

NextEnergy Group is a leading player in the global solar and renewable energy market with a mission to generate a more sustainable future by leading the transition to clean energy.  The Group has over 200 global staff members, operates in nine counties across Europe, the Americas and India, and is comprised of three key independent specialist solar companies and a charitable foundation.

The Group:

  • NextEnergy Capital: a leading global investment manager in the solar sector with over $3.2bn assets under management across its institutional funds nextenergycapital.com/
    • NextPower II (“NPII”): a private fund investing in operating solar power plants, focused on Italy.
    • NextPower III ESG (“NPIII ESG”): a private ESG fund investing in operational, in-construction and pre-construction solar infrastructure projects primarily in OECD countries.
    • NextEnergy Solar Fund (“NESF”): a solar infrastructure investment company listed on the premium segment of the London Stock Exchange focused on operational, subsidised solar assets and energy storage in the UK and international solar assets in OECD countries. nextenergysolarfund.com/
    • NextPower UK ESG (“NPUK ESG”): a private ESG fund investing into unlevered, contracted and unsubsidised new build solar plants in the UK with significant backing from the UK government-owned, UK Infrastructure Bank.
  • WiseEnergy: a market-leading solar asset manager delivering technical services across all elements of the solar asset’s life wise-energy.com/
  • Starlight: a developer focused on the construction phase of solar and other renewable energy projects starlight-energy.com/
  • NextEnergy Foundation: a foundation with a mission to alleviate poverty through clean energy access and emissions reductions nextenergyfoundation.org/

Further information on the group please visit www.nextenergygroup.com

 

About DLA Piper

DLA Piper is a global law firm with lawyers located in more than 40 countries throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific, positioning us to help clients with their legal needs around the world. In certain jurisdictions, this information may be considered attorney advertising. dlapiper.com

 

For further information

NextEnergy Group:

Tel: +44 203 746 0700

Email: [email protected]

 

Click here to download the pr