Investment boutique Future Capital Partners has launched a second renewable energy enterprise investment scheme (EIS) fund, looking to capitalise on the ongoing move towards green energy.

The fund, named Elara II, has a minimum investment of £5,000 and is looking to raise £4 million, after its predecessor, Elara I, raised £2 million.

It will target an average gross equivalent annual rate of return of 29.28 per cent through a low-risk strategy investing in the renewable energy sector and is expected to close in December.

Future Capital Partners are banking on the EU’s Renewable Energy Directive, which states that 20 per cent of all energy in the EU must come from renewables by 2020, and the growth that will entail in the renewable energy sector, as the key driver of returns.

The firm is also looking to make the fund attractive to high net-worth individuals by offering tax relief advantages, such as 30 per cent income tax relief on investments up to £500,000 in the current tax year, along with capital gains and inheritance tax advantages.

Piers Denne, head of sales and marketing at Future Capital Partners, said, ‘The successful close of the Elara I Fund has shown us that there is significant appetite among investors for this approach.’

Elara II will be partnering, as its predecessor did, with Blue Energy, a renewable energy development and investment company, as it sources lower risk renewable energy investment opportunities.

Blue Energy specialises in developing wind and solar energy projects in the UK and has just finished constructing the UK’s largest solar energy farm in Oxfordshire.

Denne believes that one of the keys to the UK hitting the 20 per cent renewable target by 2020 will be small-scale renewable projects.

He explains, ‘Blue Energy is one of the leading companies providing these services, so we could not have asked for a more suitable partner for our EIS.

‘The fact that Feed-in-Tariffs are still extremely attractive for these smaller projects means that we can offer excellent downside protection while also giving our investors outstanding returns.’