Sale of Swedish wind farm

Downing Renewables & Infrastructure

18 December 2024

 

18 December 2024

Downing Renewables & Infrastructure Trust plc

(the "Company" or "DORE")

Sale of Swedish wind farm

Further to the announcement made by the Company on 26 September 2024, the Board of DORE is pleased to announce the completion of the sale of DORE's entire interest in Gabrielsberget wind farm in Sweden ("Gabrielsberget") to Angel Wind, a subsidiary of Bagnall Energy. Completion of the sale crystallises a total return of c.54% over DORE's investment period in Gabrielsberget.

DORE purchased Gabrielsberget in January 2022 for a total consideration of £19.8m and has received €36.0m (£29.8m) from the sale proceeds and dividends during its period of ownership. The total consideration, inclusive of hedging, was at a slight premium to the carrying value in the NAV as at 30 September 2024.

A series of contractual and operational improvements undertaken by the Company's asset management team over this period have been the principal drivers behind this valuation uplift.

The proceeds of the sale will enable DORE to fully repay its revolving credit facility, to fund further growth and re-investment across the Company's portfolio of assets in the Nordic region and to fund the Company's market leading share buyback programme, which to date has returned to shareholders 7.1% of the total shares in issue at the start of the programme.

Tom Williams, Partner, Head of Energy and Infrastructure at Downing LLP, commented: "This outcome is testament to our team's continued ability to identify value-accretive investment opportunities, which will be further supported by the capital unlocked from this transaction."

ENDS

LEI: 2138004JHBJ7RHDYDR62

Contact

Downing - Investment Manager to the Company Tom Williams	[phone]
Singer Capital Markets - Joint Corporate Broker Alaina Wong, Jalini Kalaravy (Investment Banking) Sam Greatrex, Alan Geeves, James Waterlow, William Gumpel (Sales)	[phone]
Winterflood Securities Limited - Joint Corporate Broker	[phone]
Neil Morgan (Corporate Finance) Darren Willis, Andrew Marshall (Sales)
Cardew Group - Public relations advisor to the Company Tania Wild Henry Crane	[phone] [phone] [phone] [e-mail]

About Downing Renewables & Infrastructure Trust plc

DORE is a closed-end investment trust that aims to provide investors with an attractive and sustainable level of income, with an element of capital growth, by investing in a diversified portfolio of renewable energy and infrastructure assets in the UK and Northern Europe. DORE has been awarded the London Stock Exchange's Green Economy Mark in recognition of its contribution to the global 'Green Economy'.

The Board classifies DORE as a sustainable fund with a core objective of accelerating the transition to net zero through its investments, compiling and operating a diversified portfolio of renewable energy and infrastructure assets to help facilitate the transition to a more sustainable future. The Company believes that this directly contributes to climate change mitigation.

DORE's strategy, which focuses on diversification by geography, technology, revenue and project stage, is designed to increase the stability of revenues and the consistency of income to shareholders. For further details please visit www.doretrust.com.

About Downing

Downing is a responsible investment manager established in London in 1986. We currently manage £2.1 billion of assets under a broad range of investment mandates across our funds, investment trusts and tax-efficient products. As a certified B Corporation, we are focussed on creating a sustainable future, our key investment areas are renewable energy, infrastructure, property and healthcare.

Downing has c.80 professionals dedicated to renewable energy and infrastructure and a proven track record in renewables. Since 2010, Downing has made more than 200 investments and has over £920 million of assets under management in this sector.

For further details please visit www.downing.co.uk

This announcement is not for publication or distribution, directly or indirectly, in or into the United States of America. This announcement is not an offer of securities for sale into the United States. The securities referred to herein have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and may not be offered or sold in the United States, except pursuant to an applicable exemption from registration. No public offering of securities is being made in the United States.

 

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