Second wind farm investment

HG Capital Trust PLC 02 August 2005 The following is the text of a press release issued by HgCapital, which manages the investment portfolio of HgCapital Trust plc alongside those of other clients. The trust, which participates in all of HgCapital's investments, has committed €0.8 million to Sorne Wind Limited. The funds are expected to be drawn by April 2006. HgCapital announces second wind farm investment in eight months London, 2 August 2005. HgCapital the European sector-focused private equity investor, has invested in Sorne Wind Limited, which has developed and is constructing the 32MW Sorne Hill wind farm in County Donegal, Ireland. It is HgCapital's second wind farm investment in less than a year, following its acquisition of the Tir Mostyn wind farm in North Wales in December 2004. The Tir Mostyn site is in the final stages of construction and will commence full operation in October as scheduled. The transaction continues HgCapital's strategy of building a portfolio of renewable energy assets across Western Europe. Tom Murley, a director at HgCapital and head of the Renewable Energy team, said: 'We are very pleased to become a partner in Sorne Wind. Sorne will capitalise on the dual advantages of the area's superior wind resources and state of the art equipment from Enercon, the global leader in wind power technology. This continues our strategy of investing in quality wind and renewable energy projects in Europe. We foresee further investments over the coming months.' The Sorne Hill project will consist of 16 Enercon E77 turbines, with a total capacity of 32MWs. When operational from May 2006, the wind farm will generate enough power annually to light over 20,000 homes and will save approximately 60,000 tonnes a year in greenhouse gas emissions measured against equivalent fossil fuel generation. The project will sell electricity to Bord Gais under a long-term contract. HgCapital, together with Sorne Wind's founders and developers - Michael Rouse and John Ward, and a new investor, Seamus MacRory, provided the equity capital to purchase the shares from two other founding shareholders to complete the construction of the wind farm. In addition to HgCapital and sponsor equity, the Sorne Hill project is being financed by a construction and term loan facility arranged and underwritten by IIB Bank and KBC Bank. HgCapital was advised by AL Goodbody and Deloitte. - ends - Enquiries: HgCapital Tom Murley +44 (0)20 7089 7962 tom.murley@hgcapital.net Maitland Suzanne Bartch +44 (0)20 7379 5151 sbartch@maitland.co.uk Peter Ogden pogden@maitland.co.uk This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange
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