Two Acquisitions

RNS Number : 9653J

NextEnergy Solar Fund Limited

13 April 2015

 

13 April 2015

NextEnergy Solar Fund Limited ("NESF")

Two acquisitions with a combined 45.4MWp; equity proceeds fully deployed

-     Share purchase agreement signed to acquire the operational 33.7MWp Glebe Farm solar power plant in Bedfordshire ("Glebe Farm") for up to £40.5 million

-     Share purchase agreement signed to acquire the operational 11.7MWp Hawkers Farm solar power plant in Somerset ("Hawkers Farm") for up to £14.2 million

-      NESF has now secured 17 assets totalling c. 217MWp and a total investment value of c. £252 million

-      NESF has fully deployed the £246.6 million equity proceeds raised since its IPO in April 2014

-    NESF will utilise its revolving credit facility to finance any amounts not covered by its available equity funding and to fund further short-term investment opportunities

NESF is pleased to announce the signing of two separate share purchase agreements, with unrelated counterparties, to acquire special purpose vehicles which own Glebe Farm and Hawkers Farm.  Both plants were constructed under Engineering, Procurement and Construction contracts negotiated by NESF's investment advisor, NextEnergy Capital Limited.

Both plants were connected to the grid during March 2015, and are being accredited under the 1.4 Renewable Obligation Certificate ("ROC") regime. 

NESF will utilise its revolving credit facility of up to £31.5 million to finance any amounts not covered by its available equity funding and further short-term investment opportunities.

Kevin Lyon, Chairman of NESF, commented:

"We have now deployed all of the equity raised since our IPO a year ago, and have allocated the £61m raised in late February within seven weeks.  In total, NESF has acquired 17 individual assets, demonstrating the team's ability to source and execute attractive transactions. 

"NESF expects to secure further acquisitions in short order, financed by the debt facility we have in place, and is actively exploring further debt funding sources."

For further information:

NextEnergy Capital Limited	020 3239 9054
Michael Bonte-Friedheim
Aldo Beolchini
Cantor Fitzgerald Europe	020 7894 7667
Sue Inglis
Shore Capital	020 7408 4090
Bidhi Bhoma
Anita Ghanekar
Macquarie Capital (Europe) Limited	020 3037 2000
Ken Fleming
Nick Stamp
MHP Communications	020 3128 8100
Andrew Leach Jamie Ricketts Gina Bell

Notes to Editors:

NextEnergy Solar Fund (NESF)

NESF is a specialist investment company that invests in operating solar power plants in the UK.  Its objective is to secure attractive shareholder returns through RPI-linked dividends and long-term capital growth.  The Company achieves this by acquiring solar power plants on agricultural, industrial and commercial sites.

NESF has raised equity proceeds of £246.6 million since its initial public offering on the main market of the London Stock Exchange in April 2014.  It also has a two-year revolving credit facility of £31.5m in place. 

NESF is differentiated by its access to NextEnergy Capital Group (NEC Group), its Investment Manager, which has a strong track record in sourcing, acquiring and managing operating solar assets.  WiseEnergy is NEC Group's specialist operating asset management division, providing solar asset management, monitoring and other services to over 1,000 utility-scale solar power plants with an installed capacity in excess of 1 GW.

Further information on NESF, NEC Group and WiseEnergy is available at www.nextenergysolarfund.com, www.nextenergycapital.com and www.wise-energy.eu.

 

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