Standalone Sustainability Report Publication

NextEnergy Solar Fund Limited

26 July 2023

 

LEI: 213800ZPHCBDDSQH5447

26 July 2023

NextEnergy Solar Fund Limited

("NESF" or the "Company")

Publication of Standalone Sustainability and ESG Report

Details provided of NESF's sustainability journey, proprietary approach to biodiversity and industry leading ESG initiatives

NextEnergy Solar Fund, the specialist solar+ fund, has published its second annual Sustainability and ESG Report for the year ended 31 March 2023 (the "Report").

The Report builds on NESF's first Sustainability and ESG report published in 2022 and illustrates the breadth and depth of actions NESF has taken across the three pillars that comprise its approach to Sustainability and ESG - Biodiversity, Climate Change and Human Rights. The Report also details NESF's sustainability journey, including the development of its proprietary approach to biodiversity, the strengthening of the Board's governance and oversight of ESG, the advancement of ESG standards, and enhancement of disclosure and reporting frameworks.

NESF continues to make progress against its current ESG priorities and in spearheading sustainability and ESG initiatives within the solar, storage and investment sectors. In addition to generating enough clean electricity to power 242,000 UK homes over the year, NESF has made a wider contribution to society. This includes:

·        Championing Biodiversity: Promoting and preserving biodiversity is as important to tackling climate change as reducing carbon and other emissions. Over the year, NESF has taken significant steps to promote natural capital and biodiversity conservation best practice across its own portfolio and published thought leadership pieces encouraging others to follow its lead;

·        Solar Stewardship Initiative: NESF recognises that it has responsibilities and impacts beyond its own borders when contracting for goods or services. Alongside enhancing the Company's management of its supply chain, NESF (through its Investment Manager, NextEnergy Capital) has played a leading role within the industry, such as the Solar Stewardship Initiative and active involvement in Solar Energy UK, demonstrating NESF's commitment to sustainable practices and transparency across the supply chain; and

·        NextEnergy Foundation: NESF acknowledges its responsibility as a successful, sustainable Company to support and fund initiatives that deliver positive societal impacts around the world. Through its donation to the NextEnergy Foundation during the year, NESF has made an important contribution towards alleviating poverty in parts of Africa through increasing access to renewable energy, as well as supporting sustainable recovery activities in Ukraine.

ESG Performance Highlights:

	As at 31 March 2023	As at 31 March 2022	Change
Tonnes of CO2e emission avoided per year	363,000	328,700	+10.43%
Equivalent to UK homes powered for one year	242,000	216,300	+11.89%
Total emissions avoided since 2014 (ktCO2E)	2,181	1,818	+19.97%
Total fossil fuel avoided since 2015 (kilotonnes of oil equivalent)	929.4	769.1	+20.84%
Community funding (through Special Purpose Vehicles)	c.£104,000	c.£91,400	+13.78%
Donated to the NextEnergy Foundation FY 2022-23	£400,000	£100,000	+300%
Universal Biodiversity Management Plan (UBPM) sites	45, with 15 more due by year end	30	+50%
Number of biodiversity exemplar sites	8 (completed or in development)	6	+33.33%
Total acres of wildflowers planted across portfolio	38	34	+12%
Equivalent cars taken off UK roads for one year	c.120,000*	n/a	n/a

*Comparative numbers have been given only where those metrics were provided in the first report

Other ESG highlights in the period include:

·     Involvement in industry-wide projects, including the Solar Stewardship Initiative, to help ensure responsible sourcing across the solar supply chain;

·     Further development of NESF's approach to biodiversity, with the expansion of its Universal Biodiversity Management Plan;

·     Continued development of NextEnergy Capital's ESG risk management and proprietary due diligence processes, focused on environmental and social impacts;

·     Direct funding to community initiatives and contribution to the NextEnergy Group charity, the NextEnergy Foundation; and

·     Expansion of NextEnergy Capital's ESG and Sustainability team, which advises NESF, doubling in size to six team members.

The report is now available to download from Reports and Publication section of the Company's website: https://www.nextenergysolarfund.com/reports-and-publications/

Josephine Bush, Chair of the NESF Board ESG Committee, commented:

"We are delighted to publish this report looking at the extensive action NESF has taken to deliver on its current ESG priorities, and the strategic review being undertaken to ensure that our overall approach reflects the changing expectations of society and investors. We are committed to ensuring that our approach to ESG is best-in-class and reflects evolving international Sustainability and ESG standards. We look forward to building on our progress in the period and presenting the outcome of our strategic review in due course."

Ross Grier, COO of NextEnergy Capital, said:

"NESF continues to go from strength to strength and we are excited to present further information on our current and future ESG impacts in this report. Through measuring and disclosing NESF's sustainability framework, we not only show the progress made during the period but also identify how we are reducing risk within NESF to make the strategy more sustainable. I would like to thank the entire team for this detailed report and for continuing to implement NESF's ESG framework that is delivering demonstrable positive impacts for all our stakeholders."

For further information: NextEnergy Capital Michael Bonte-Friedheim	020 3746 0700 [e-mail]
Ross Grier
Stephen Rosser
Peter Hamid (Investor Relations)
RBC Capital Markets	020 7653 4000
Matthew Coakes
Elizabeth Evans Kathryn Deegan
Cenkos Securities	020 7397 8900
James King
William Talkington
H/Advisors Maitland	020 7379 5151
Neil Bennett
Finlay Donaldson Alistair de Kare-Silver
Ocorian Administration (Guernsey) Limited	014 8174 2642
Kevin Smith

Notes to Editors¹:

About NextEnergy Solar Fund

NESF is a specialist solar+ fund listed on the premium segment of the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250.  NESF's investment objective is to provide ordinary shareholders with attractive risk-adjusted returns, principally in the form of regular dividends, by investing in a diversified portfolio of utility-scale solar energy and energy storage infrastructure assets.  The majority of NESF's long-term cash flows are inflation-linked via UK government subsidies. 

The NESF portfolio has a combined installed power capacity of 865MW (excluding NextPower III MW on an equivalent look-through basis).  NESF may invest up to 30% of its gross asset value in non-UK OECD countries, 15% in solar-focused private infrastructure funds, and 10% in energy storage assets.  As at 31 March 2023, the Company had an audited gross asset value of £1,218m.  For further information on NESF please visit www.nextenergysolarfund.com

Article 9 Fund

NESF is classified under Article 9 of the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation and EU Taxonomy Regulation.  NESF's sustainability-related disclosures in the financial services sector in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 can be accessed on the ESG section of both the NESF and NEC websites.

About NextEnergy Group

NESF is managed by NextEnergy Capital, part of the NextEnergy Group.  NextEnergy Group was founded in 2007 to become a leading market participant in the international solar sector.  Since its inception, the Group has been active in the development, construction, and ownership of solar assets across multiple jurisdictions. NextEnergy Group operates via its three business units: NextEnergy Capital (Investment Management), WiseEnergy (Operating Asset Management), and Starlight (Asset Development).

·      NextEnergy Capital: Has over 16 years' specialist solar expertise, having invested in over 375 individual solar plants across the world.  NextEnergy Capital currently manages four institutional funds with a total capacity in excess of 2.4GW and has assets under management of $3.7bn.  www.nextenergycapital.com  

·      WiseEnergy®:  Provides solar asset management, monitoring and technical due diligence services to over 1,350 utility-scale solar power plants with an installed capacity in excess of 1.8GW.  WiseEnergy clients comprise leading banks and equity financiers in the energy and infrastructure sector.  www.wise-energy.com

·    Starlight: Has developed over 100 utility-scale projects internationally and continues to progress a large pipeline of c.10GW of both green and brownfield project developments across global geographies.

Notes:

^1: All financial data is audited at 31 March 2023, being the latest date in respect of which NESF has published financial information

 

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