BROWNFIELDS 3

An infrastructure fund investing in the remediation and regeneration of industrially polluted land in the EU (mainly in France and Belgium)

The purpose of the fund is to acquire contaminated urban and industrial sites from private and public owners, remediate the polluted soil and groundwater and sell the remediated land to third parties for development. The developments on the remediated sites may potentially comprise social and affordable housing and buildings with high energy-efficiency performance in which the fund may act as co-developer.

Depending on their technical characteristics, the brownfield remediation and development may fall under Annex II of Directive 2011/92/EU. This will be reviewed during appraisal and addressed in the investment guidelines of the fund. The situation regarding environmental liabilities, taking into account Directive 2004/35/EC on environmental liabilities with regard to the prevention and remedying of environmental damage, will be addressed during the appraisal.

The promoter is a private company which is not operating in the utilities sector and does not have the status of a contracting authority. Thus, it is not covered by EU directives on procurement.

The EU Cohesion Policy promotes an integrated development approach and the reuse of brownfield sites in preference to greenfield sites. Brownfield regeneration can address health, ecological and economic threats from site contamination and helps to cope with rising population in urban areas and avoiding urban sprawl.