SAO PAULO (Reuters) - Brazilian fund manager Perfin has created a new company focused on renewable energy generation, especially solar, with expected investment totaling 5.5 billion reais ($1 billion) by 2025, a company executive told Reuters. The new company Mercury Renew, which has an operational partnership with energy generator Servtec, is Perfin’s latest venture into energy and highlights investor interest in Brazil’s electricity sector and potential in renewables. Mercury Renew will focus on solar projects, especially in the Southeast and Center-West of the country. It will look to sell power directly to companies that usually buy on the free market, mainly large industries and businesses. “The aim is to explore these avenues, in both the free market and in renewable generation, with the decarbonization of the economy,” Mercury Renew Chief Executive Pedro Fiuza said. The company aims to reach 2 gigawatts of generating capacity by 2025. Perfin’s strategy comes as investors in generation projects in Brazil are increasingly turning to the free market, where rising demand from companies for clean energy has helped to spur activity and the construction of several generation plants. The investment will come from existing Perfin funds, while the new company will also raise cash via loans from development banks and possible debenture issues, he said. Reporting by Luciano Costa; Writing by Jamie McGeever; Editing by Marguerita Choy Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.