Idealist Capital nabs initial C$250m for debut energy transition fund

• The fund’s investors include Desjardins, Investissement Québec, Fondaction, TD Bank and National Bank of Canada
• Idealist Capital is led by Founding Partners Pierre Larochelle and Steeve Robitaille

Idealist Capital, a Montreal-based private equity firm focused on the energy transition, has held the first closing of its inaugural fund, raising C$250 million. Idealist Climate Impact Fund’s target is C$500 million.

The fund’s investors include Desjardins, Investissement Québec, Fondaction, TD Bank and National Bank of Canada, as well as a group of prominent family offices and accredited investors.

Idealist Capital, led by Founding Partners Pierre Larochelle and Steeve Robitaille, is a North American fund with a primary focus on the Canadian market. It provides businesses with growth capital to accelerate the commercialization of proven solutions which generate positive climate impact.

“We are grateful to our investors for their partnership and trust,” said Larochelle, in a statement. “Having been actively involved in the climate impact ecosystem for over a decade, the urgency and the opportunity to widely commercialize innovative solutions in the fight against climate change are unequivocal. Idealist Capital will help fill a market need by supporting growth stage businesses whose activities contribute to decarbonization.”

“Much of the energy transition will come from solutions which are proven today and require significant capital to scale,” said Steeve Robitaille. “Idealist Capital is already building relationships with businesses who have solutions which are ready to be deployed. We are excited to support entrepreneurs who are aligned with our mission, with an objective to contribute to the success of many sustainable platforms.”