Annual Financial Report

RNS Number : 6209I

Ecofin Global Utilities Inf Tst PLC

14 December 2020

 

ECOFIN GLOBAL UTILITIES AND INFRASTRUCTURE TRUST PLC (the "Company")

Annual Results Announcement for the year ended 30 September, 2020

This announcement contains regulated information.

Ecofin Global Utilities and Infrastructure Trust plc (the "Company") is an authorised UK investment trust whose objectives are to achieve a high, secure dividend yield on a portfolio invested primarily in the equities of utility and infrastructure companies in developed countries and long-term growth in the capital value of the portfolio while preserving shareholders' capital in adverse market conditions.

The information contained in this Annual Financial Report Announcement has been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") as adopted by the European Union ("EU") and as applied in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act 2006 (the "Act"). These comprise standards and interpretations of the International Accounting Standards ("IAS") and Standing Interpretations Committee as approved by the International Accounting Standards Committee ("IASC") that remain in effect, to the extent that IFRS have been adopted by the EU.  The results for the year ended 30 September, 2020 are audited but do not constitute statutory accounts as defined in Section 434 of the Act.  The statutory accounts have not yet been delivered to the Registrar of Companies. Full statutory accounts for the year ended 30 September, 2019 included an unqualified audit report and have been filed with the Registrar of Companies.

Highlights

· During the financial year ended 30 September, 2020 the Company's net asset value ("NAV") per share decreased by 2.6% and the price of an ordinary share increased by 5.6%, both on a total return basis (assuming the reinvestment of dividends). The discount to NAV at which the shares traded narrowed significantly and averaged 2.6% over the year; during the 6 months to 30 September, 2020 the shares traded at an average premium to NAV of 0.4%;

· Four quarterly dividends totalling 6.55p were paid - an increase of 2.3% from the previous year, providing a dividend yield (annualised) of 4.1% on 159.25p, the price of the Company's shares as at 30 September, 2020

· The Company's NAV per share increased by 39.4% (8.6% per annum) on a total return basis from admission on 26 September, 2016 until 30 September, 2020 and on the same basis its share price increased by 70.8% (14.3% per annum)

· Subsequent performance has been strong: from the year-end on 30 September, 2020 to 30 November, 2020, NAV per share increased by 10.3% and the share price by 13.2% (both on a total return basis). Over one and three years, the performance of both the portfolio and the share price have been ahead of the MSCI World Index and all the relevant sector indices. Our sector, historically regarded as mature and primarily income generating, is evolving into one offering significant long term growth as well

· The Company's Annual General Meeting on 9 March, 2021 will be closed to shareholders, due to restrictions related to COVID-19, but we invite you to join a webinar which our Investment Manager intends to host on the same day to provide an update on portfolio strategy and to answer your questions. 

Summary	As at or year to 30 September 2020	As at or year to 30 September 2019
Net assets attributable to shareholders (£'000)	156,393	161,502
NAV per share	164.60p	175.79p
Share price (mid-market)	159.25p	157.00p
Discount to NAV1	3.3%	10.7%
Revenue return per share	4.97p	5.48p
Dividends paid per share	6.55p	6.40p
Dividend yield 1,2	4.1%	4.1%
Gearing on net assets 1,3	14.8%	6.3%
Ongoing charges ratio 1,4	1.48%	1.68%

1. Please refer to Alternative Performance Measures on page 63 of the Annual Report & Accounts.

2. Dividends paid (annualised) as a percentage of share price.

3. Gearing is the Company's borrowings (including the net amounts due from/to brokers) less cash divided by net assets attributable to shareholders.

4. The ongoing charges ratio is calculated in accordance with guidance issued by the Association of Investment Companies ("AIC") as the operating costs (annualised) divided by the average NAV (with income) throughout the year.

Performance for periods to 30 September 2020	1 year %	3 years %	Since admission on 26 September 20165 %
NAV per share total return 6	-2.6	30.1	39.4
Share price total return 6	5.6	41.3	70.8
Indices (total returns in £):
FTSE All-Share Index	-16.5	-9.3	1.3
FTSE ASX Utilities Index	4.5	2.6	-6.6
MSCI World Index	5.6	31.8	51.4
MSCI World Utilities Index	-6.9	23.7	29.7
S&P Global Infrastructure Index	-18.6	-3.2	4.2

5. The Company was incorporated on 27 June, 2016 and its investment activities began on 13 September, 2016 when the liquid assets of Ecofin Water & Power Opportunities plc ("EWPO") were transferred to it. The formal inception date for the measurement of the Company's performance is 26 September, 2016, the date its shares were listed on the London Stock Exchange.

6. Total return includes dividends paid and reinvested immediately. Please also refer to the Alternative Performance Measures on page 63 of the Annual Report & Accounts.

Chairman's Statement

Performance

Although the Company's NAV per share decreased by 6.4% during the financial year ended 30 September, 2020, the total return was only down by 2.6% with the reinvestment of quarterly dividends paid; happily, the price of the Company's shares rose by 1.4% and the total return on the shares was 5.6%. These results compare very favourably with the total returns on the MSCI World Utilities Index and the S&P Global Infrastructure Index of -6.9% and -18.6% respectively in sterling terms.

As reported at the interim stage, the financial year went well for the Company's portfolio until the arrival of the coronavirus pandemic ("COVID-19") marked share prices down sharply. Equity markets and sentiment have since recovered strongly from their lows in March, assisted by stimulus and support measures from central banks and governments, expectations of a vaccine and a growing realisation that, though the impact of the pandemic was severe, it was temporary. Your Company had a low level of gearing going into the market drop and our Investment Manager was able to take advantage of significant share price dislocations by taking on additional borrowings. The second half of the financial year marked a strong recovery in the NAV and the share price.

EGL's performance builds on the strong results that the Company has delivered since its launch just over four years ago. Since then, NAV and share price total returns have been 8.6% and 14.3% per annum respectively; these are in line with our target of delivering total returns over the longer-term of 6-12% per annum.

The Investment Manager's Report details the major events of the year and the current strategy.

Dividends

Last December your Board announced an increase in the quarterly dividend rate to 1.65p per share, equivalent to 6.60p per annum (effective from the February 2020 dividend). We have decided to maintain this rate in spite of the reduction to investment income as a result of COVID-19. This reflects our confidence in the resilience of our portfolio and our expectation that income will recover. Total income declined by 7.6% compared to the previous year and our net revenue per share declined by 9.3% year-on-year. In a difficult year for dividends we believe this relatively good result was appreciated by shareholders.

Discount and Share issuance

Although the Company's shares traded at an average discount to NAV of 2.6% during the full financial year, we are delighted that they regularly traded above NAV in the second half of the financial year. This has enabled us to issue new shares at a premium to NAV in response to demand. Since late April and up to 9 December, 2020, 4,731,176 new shares have been issued.

We plan to continue to issue new shares when we can as we believe that this will increase liquidity, encourage participation by new investors and reduce the Company's ongoing charges ratio, which fell from 1.68% to 1.48% in the financial year.

Ecofin/Tortoise

During the year the ultimate holding company of our Investment Manager, Tortoise Investments, LLC, rebranded itself as TortoiseEcofin to reflect the importance of sustainability-focussed investments and mandates to its business. Our Investment Manager, Tortoise Advisors UK Limited, was renamed Ecofin Advisors Limited. As a result of this, we have decided not to recommend the change of name of your Company which was originally suggested in last year's Annual Report.

COVID-19

The pervasive effects of COVID-19 continue to test the resilience of individuals and businesses. Most work undertaken by the Company's third-party service providers had to be transferred from offices to homes but we are pleased to report that we suffered no disruption or reduced capability. The Board has stayed in close contact with Ecofin and our service providers in order to gauge emerging risks, receive reports, listen to the Investment Manager's views, hear his responses and actions as events unfold, and to provide a sounding board.

Board

Martin N è gre has said that he does not wish to stand for re-election at our next AGM. Martin has been an invaluable colleague over the years and he will be much missed. I am very pleased to say that Susannah Nicklin has joined the Board, bringing us a new wealth of experience.

Outlook

Your Company is investing in sectors which are experiencing great change and driving significant progress in terms of the decarbonisation and the modernisation of infrastructure. These are exciting times for us and the companies we invest in.

The fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic, Brexit and other global tensions will continue to affect us: these may result in continued market volatility but our Investment Manager remains optimistic about the outlook. The pandemic has galvanised ambitious climate action plans from governments and corporations worldwide which will support the growth trajectory for renewables-focussed companies in the portfolio. It has also prompted policymakers to commit to large monetary and fiscal stimulus programmes which should help the recovery of economic infrastructure shares heavily affected by lockdowns while utility companies at the centre of the energy transition continue to invest, improve efficiency and respond to customer needs.

Our Investment Manager expects significant growth in income from 2020's depressed levels which would improve our dividend cover and permit the Company to resume its strategy of increasing dividends. Performance in the current year has been strong: from the year-end on 30 September, 2020 to 30 November 2020, NAV per share increased by 10.3% and the share price by 13.2% (both on a total return basis). Over one and three years, the performance of both the portfolio and the share price have been ahead of the MSCI World Index and all the relevant sector indices. Our sector, historically regarded as mature and primarily income generating, is evolving into one offering significant long term growth as well.

David Simpson

Chairman

14 December, 2020

 

Investment Manager's Report

The year has delivered tremendous uncertainty and hardship for many individuals and businesses, however the opportunities for investment in our universe have gathered pace as our sectors continue to work towards the environmental improvements that people around the world expect. March marked the trough in equity markets pressured by the global outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, and over the summer we experienced a sharp improvement in sentiment along with a snap-back in global trade which provided an impressive tailwind for equity markets. In the US equity market, leadership was concentrated in a handful of mostly technology-focused names pushing several benchmark indices to all-time highs. The mood dimmed during September as infection rates began to rise again and uncertainties relating to the US elections grew but investors were cheered in November,

after the year-end, by a balanced electoral outcome and vaccine announcements.

The benchmark 10-year US Treasury yield, which started the Company's financial year at 1.7% and remained steady until early 2020, dropped to under 0.6% by March 2020 and held in a tight range until year-end, closing at 0.65%. We saw a similar pattern and historically low rates in other major markets too. The MSCI World Index, after considerable volatility and an incredibly strong rally between 31 March and 30 September (+24.0%), increased by 5.6% over the Company's full financial year in sterling terms, notwithstanding sterling's 4% appreciation against the US dollar over those 6 months.

During the year, the performance of the Company's reference indices, the S&P Global Infrastructure Index (-18.6%) and the MSCI World Utilities Index (-6.9%), diverged significantly, given the transportation and energy infrastructure exposure included in the former, and neither could keep pace with the MSCI World Index's gains during the 'risk on' recovery rally which lasted from April to August. Performance was uneven within the utility segments too with renewables-focused businesses leading all year, beginning to receive due recognition as growth stocks. Unless indicated otherwise, all equity market, Company and index returns are stated as total returns in sterling.

Performance summary

The year was a tale of two distinct parts, so we set out the half-year detail here for extra colour:

(Total returns in £)	First half F2020 %	Second half F2020 %	Full year %
NAV	-15.3	15.0	-2.6
MSCI World Utilities Index	-12.8	6.8	-6.9
S&P Global Infrastructure Index	-26.5	10.5	-18.6

The Company's results for the first half of the year were defined by the severe falls in equity markets in March 2020 (the NAV declined by 15.2% in March alone). The portfolio, with some modest rearrangements which we describe in this Report, recovered well thereafter, at a considerably stronger pace than the relevant reference indices.

Leverage played an amplifying role on the NAV during the year but had little impact overall (+0.1%); it was actively managed and helpful to the revenue account. The NAV was negatively impacted by currency moves and we estimate that the strength of sterling versus the US dollar over the 12 months (+5.1%) and its weakness against the Euro (-2.2%) combined to remove approximately 1.2 percentage points from the NAV (compared to the performance of the underlying investments).

Portfolio holdings with renewables exposure were by far the best performing stocks in the investment universe and portfolio during the year, before and during the pandemic. The list covers a broad geographical spectrum and a dominant theme: decarbonisation. Environmental shares (Covanta, Suez, Veolia) suffered declines given their sensitivity to commercial and industrial activity levels, transportation infrastructure was generally weak as a result of lockdowns, and several US utility share prices were under pressure during the dreadful fire season in California.

Geographically, with its relatively large allocation to Europe, the portfolio was well positioned. Continental European utilities led the global peer group's recovery from March onwards by a wide margin and the portfolio held a large proportion of the strongest performers of the year in the investment universe. The portfolio's best percentage returns over the year were from UK holdings (+8.1%) but this was entirely owing to their tremendous rally in late 2019 after the UK general election; performance lagged thereafter. US utilities' valuations slid relative to peers, their own history and the US equity market, even while their earnings and overall business models held up in the pandemic, with the ferocious wildfire season and election uncertainty playing a part.

The North American allocation was a drag on the NAV over the full year but it outperformed the local sector index, especially over the last six months, thanks to a substantial exposure to Canadian and renewables names. The non-OECD and emerging markets stocks in the portfolio were volatile given the majority are in the transportation infrastructure segment.

Sector developments

In an incredibly difficult environment, essential assets businesses had a relatively good year, reputationally and financially. Utilities found demand for their services either unaffected or only moderately negatively impacted by lockdowns, except where commercial and industrial services account for a high proportion of revenues, and capital investment plans are intact. As major owners and developers of clean energy sources at a time when the global conscience is fully focussed on climate action, the renewables-focused utilities have an appealing combination of defensive characteristics and, increasingly, higher expectations for growth.

Greenhouse gas emissions fell dramatically this year, a feature of the pandemic which has received attention. According to Ember, in the first half of 2020, wind and solar power generation increased by 14% (compared with the same period in 2019) in countries representing 83% of global electricity demand, while global power demand fell 3% due to COVID-19 lockdowns. These sources of renewable energy made up nearly 10% of power in most parts of the world, having doubled their share of the global mix over the last 5 years, and BloombergNEF records that solar and wind accounted for more than two-thirds of the additions of new power generation capacity in 2019 globally, up from less than 25% in 2010.

Two primary drivers of decarbonisation across industries clearly emerged this year. One is regulation, which at various levels is setting increasingly ambitious targets for the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, largely in response to a rising importance of environmental issues in public opinion and consumer choice. Technological improvements too are enabling the implementation of such targets on economically favourable terms. In EGL's sectors, the levelized costs of renewable electricity (wind and solar) have declined so significantly that they are now economically competitive with existing conventional thermal technologies (coal and gas), and regulatory frameworks can therefore seize upon these improvements to accelerate their own goals.

The EU is leading the global efforts to shift to clean energies and cut emissions. It presented the greenest coronavirus recovery package - seeking to make the Green Deal an engine of economic recovery - and in September raised its climate action ambitions with its plan to reduce EU GHG emissions by at least 55% by 2030 (compared to 1990 levels), laying the foundations to reach 'climate neutrality' by 2050. China, by far the world's largest emitter - while also the world's largest installer of renewables, hydro and nuclear - surprised in September with a pledge to become carbon neutral by 2060, marking a decisive step up in its contribution toward the global energy transition.

Contributions to NAV

The best contributors to NAV during the year were all amongst the largest 10 holdings and again included NextEra Energy, one of the world's largest investors in renewables. Along with two strong quarters, NextEra recently announced the acquisition of a transmission company, which will increase its regulated asset base and therefore its ability to fund growth, and a pilot investment in hydrogen which it sees as a promising emerging renewable energy technology (to sit alongside wind, solar and battery storage). NextEra also reported that its inventory of planned projects (approximately 15,000 MW) is now larger than its existing renewables portfolio. We expect at least 6-8% earnings growth in the coming years supporting annual dividend growth in the region of 10%.

Two holdings, Terraform Power (or TERP, one of the best performing yieldcos this year even prior to this deal) and its parent Brookfield Renewable Partners (which owned 62% of TERP), merged in July to form Brookfield Renewable Corporation, creating a giant pure-play renewable energy company with 19,000 MW of installed capacity in North America and Europe and an almost equally large pipeline of development opportunities. Brookfield has recently increased its investment target and guided cash flow growth to the top end of its range (6-11% per annum).

EDP was the largest contributor to NAV over the 12 months ending 30 September, with the shares rising nearly 25% (30% total return) as the company delivered on its planned disposals, selling a large portfolio of hydroelectric power plants in Iberia and its supply business in Spain at attractive multiples, while also continuing to realise value (and capital gains) on periodic asset rotations in the renewables portfolio, which this year encompassed wind assets in the US and Spain. In July, EDP also agreed to acquire Viesgo, a Spanish operator of power distribution grids and renewables in a deal financed through a €1 billion rights issue which was more than fully subscribed. The disposals combined with the equity raise brought EDP's leverage down to the lowest level in over a decade, setting a solid basis for the company's planned acceleration in renewables growth.

RWE was the largest contributor to NAV over the last 6 months - and consistently top 5 over the last 3 years - as the shares have re-rated from a deeply discounted valuation thanks to a substantial simplification of the company's portfolio and its radical transformation into a global renewables major. Its €2 billion capital increase this summer, to allow the group to accelerate its expansion in wind and solar projects, was heavily oversubscribed. Enel, majority owner of Endesa, has been comparably impactful on the NAV; Enel has been a pioneer in renewables for decades (in Europe as much as in North and Latin America), and this year moved to dramatically accelerate its exit from coal which should be phased out before 2030, well ahead of the schedule set out only a year ago.

On the other side of the ledger, US waste management and waste-to-energy company Covanta and environmental services companies Veolia and Suez did not perform well as industrial volumes came under real pressure. Covanta cut its dividend in April, citing uncertainties created by COVID-19 and slow growth prospects until UK plants come online at the end of 2022 and in 2023. We believe that Covanta is a structural beneficiary of the shift away from waste disposal to landfills and that it has the potential to become a larger player in the circular economy and material recycling. As the company undergoes a full strategic review (announced in October), we expect it to articulate its capital allocation and growth strategy more clearly, which should be well received by the market. The French government's suggestion that various French companies suspend or reduce their dividends placed additional strain on the share prices of Veolia and Suez, as well as Engie.

In North America, utility valuations fanned out; those with solid green credentials traded to higher relative valuations, while several others traditionally focused on fossil fuel assets began to reorganise their business mix to improve their sustainability profiles, in the hope of shedding their valuation discounts.

Transportation infrastructure businesses immediately felt the force of the economic and traffic downturn as a natural consequence of the lockdowns and their subsequent recovery was patchy. In general, road operators fared better than airports. ENAV, which manages Italy's air traffic services, and Beijing Capital International Airport, both small holdings, together negatively impacted the NAV by c. 1.0% during the year due to the substantial decline in their share prices which only began to revert in November as a result of encouraging results from coronavirus vaccine trials.

Purchases and sales

As flagged in our monthly reports, there were good opportunities to establish new holdings in April and May, especially in North American utilities which had lagged their global peers' recoveries from the March lows in markets, and add to infrastructure names which had underperformed even pre-lockdowns and were looking set to exceed bearish expectations for traffic.

We established a position in Edison International, an electric utility based in Southern California which is exiting a period of significant underperformance related to uncertainty surrounding its liabilities for wildfire damages in 2017 and 2018. Despite the particularly severe wildfire season in 2020, new legislation introduced last year to immunise utilities' balance sheets from wildfire risks implies no financial impact for Edison this year. California is committed to carbon neutrality by 2045 and Southern California Edison, Edison's largest subsidiary, has committed to decarbonising 100% of retail sales, electrifying transportation and buildings, and migrating to low-carbon fuels for anything that cannot migrate to electricity. Accordingly, the company has a capital spending program for 2020-2023 of c. $20 billion for distribution and transmission infrastructure mostly, and generation and wildfire mitigation-related spending.

Other new names in the portfolio include TransAlta Renewables, China Longyuan Power, Endesa and Brookfield Renewable. TransAlta Renewables operates in North America and Australia. The company has one of the largest wind power portfolios in North America, a strong balance sheet with sponsorship from its parent, and a highly contracted portfolio (weighted contract life of 11 years). China Longyuan Power is the largest generator of electricity from wind in China and Asia and its shares are undervalued based on our growth expectations for the company. Endesa's shares were added to the portfolio after they were caught up in the indiscriminate coronavirus-induced market sell-off in March and were a strong performance contributor during the second half of the financial year. Brookfield Renewable (discussed above) is a new 'top 10' name given its parent's acquisition of TerraForm Power; this new entity augmented an existing holding in Brookfield Renewable Energy so the portfolio's total exposure to the Brookfield Renewable share classes is currently approximately 4.6%. We also added to Ferrovial, Atlas Arteria and Spark Infrastructure on weakness and made a timely addition to SSE more recently.

At the height of the pandemic, we doubled our position in Drax whose share price had suffered a substantial setback due to the steep decline in power prices as lockdowns were enforced across Europe. We were confident that fundamentals would recover (they did; by the end of September the share price had increased by about 70%) and continue to like the fundamentals, particularly its gearing to higher carbon prices in Europe. The price of carbon dipped briefly to €16/ton in March but was €27/ton again by the end of September, hovering near its all-time highs given increasingly ambitious EU emissions policies and notwithstanding the economic slump.

The only meaningful reductions since 31 March were to large holdings in two companies we have long favoured, EDP and NextEra Energy Partners, the yieldco partially owned by NextEra Energy. Both had been very strong performers and were easy places to crystallise profits which we reallocated to positions more significantly affected by the pandemic. In the same period, we also completed the sales of Neoen and Calisen.

Portfolio themes

Increasingly we are asked about the Company's exposure to renewables and fossil fuels. We have an easy time pointing to, for example, Enel's business transformation away from coal-fired generation and NextEra Energy's renewables credentials. The portfolio has exposure to natural gas too, which remains a major fuel for electricity, and to gas transmission via Williams, Spark Infrastructure and APA Group.

Formal sub-sectors, based on Global Industry Classification Standards ("GICS"), categorise about 23% of the Company's holdings as Renewables, but the portfolio's actual exposure to renewables is much larger once the assets within the big names categorised as Integrated Utilities (the majority of the large Continentals such as EDP, RWE, Iberdrola, Engie) or Regulated Utilities (Algonquin) or Other (Drax) are considered. Renewables-related growth is the backbone of our investment thesis and if we categorise the holdings according to themes - based on current generation profiles and 'direction of travel' too - the portfolio profile is as follows:

% of investments by Ecofin themes

Zero carbon & renewables	60
Other utilities in transition	9
Water utilities	6
Energy infrastructure	17
Transportation infrastructure	8

The portfolio screens well in terms of carbon emissions, i.e. tonnes of CO₂ emitted per megawatt hour of electricity generation. As at 30 September, the portfolio's electricity generators had CO₂ emissions which were 18% below the average emissions of the electricity grid in which the companies operate, largely because of a relatively small reliance on coal (12% of the mix), and 27% lower than those of companies in the global utilities index. EGL's companies screen even better on a forward-looking basis.

Gearing and yield

The level of gearing averaged 10% during the year. Borrowings equivalent to 6-8% of NAV were maintained until there was a step-change in May 2020. By then, we had assessed the impact of announced or likely dividend suspensions due to lockdowns and other restrictions, modestly reshaped the portfolio in view of the severity of many share price moves, and our confidence in the resilience of earnings and dividends had been reinforced by our research and communications with companies. From early summer until the end of the financial year, gearing was maintained at 14-15% of NAV. The added gearing was modestly helpful to the revenue account but the motivation for the additional exposure lay principally with conviction for capital appreciation potential. The portfolio yield was 4.9% as at 30 September, 2020.

Income from investments

We began the financial year expecting 5-7% growth in dividends (year-over-year) from portfolio holdings. This appeared conservative until COVID-19 caused the suspension or cancellation of dividends from a handful of companies in the portfolio, specifically those highly exposed to industrial contracts (e.g., environmental services) and for transportation infrastructure groups (roads and airports). Political intervention to suppress dividends in certain sectors, including where the state is a shareholder, also became a factor in France where EDF's and Engie's dividends for 2019 (due to be paid in 2020) were cancelled.

In the event, income declined by 7.6%, in line with the forecasts we presented to the Board in May. We anticipate a strong rebound in dividend receipts in the current fiscal year - in the order of 10% year-over-year - given the resilience in demand for the majority of the portfolio's essential services, the call for renewable energy even while the pandemic weighs on global energy needs, momentum in cash flow for portfolio holdings and their balance sheet health.

Outlook

There is little dispute that investment in infrastructure must increase substantially in order to achieve commitments consistent with the Paris Agreement, SDGs, and national and corporate responsibility and climate policies. In Europe, which wants to reach carbon-neutrality by 2050, national energy plans require total investments of €825 billion over the next decade alone according to Goldman Sachs. Myriad initiatives are pulling in the same direction to drive greenhouse gas emissions lower, adopt cleaner and renewable energy sources, and promote more efficient use of those resources. Companies at the sharp end of innovation and strategies that will enable sustainability goals to be accomplished are growing and we expect their shares to be rewarding.

While there may be a pandemic-related pause in infrastructure investment recorded for 2020, the growth trajectory for global investment in clean power and efficiency measures appears secure; cleaner energies should, we believe, continue to capture a greater share of overall energy related investments - due to pure economics and political priorities. Utilities are the specialists, developers, owners and leaders in low carbon energy. It is interesting to note that oil majors BP, Royal Dutch Shell and Total recently pledged to begin spending ambitiously to develop cleaner fuels, potentially eyeing utilities' existing renewables assets and backlogs as an effective way to make quick inroads.

We think that the Company's portfolio, and the sectors it is exposed to, can deliver solid growth in a variety of economic and market environments. The portfolio's companies are proving their resilience and continuing to develop pipelines of development opportunities, thereby providing visibility on cash flow growth over the foreseeable future. Furthermore, valuations in our sectors still largely reflect historical norms rather than the substantial growth we envisage given the course of policy and corporate capital allocation plans.

Ecofin Advisors Limited

Investment Manager

14 December, 2020

Key performance indicators

The Company's Directors meet regularly to review the performance of the Company and its shares. Key performance indicators ("KPIs") used to assess the Company's progress and its success in meeting its objectives are set out below. Please also refer to Alternative Performance Measures on page 63.

KPIs	As at or year ended 30 September 2020	As at or year ended 30 September 2019
Change in:
NAV per share 1	-2.6%	27.4%
Share price 1	5.6%	32.3%
Discount to NAV at year-end	3.3%	10.7%
Average discount to NAV during the year	2.6%	12.3%
Revenue return per share	4.97p	5.48p
Dividends paid per share	6.55p	6.40p
Dividend yield	4.1%	4.1%
Dividend cover 2	75.9%	85.6%
Ongoing charges	1.48%	1.68%

1. Total return, assuming reinvestment of dividends.

2. The dividend cover is the proportion of the dividends paid to shareholders which was covered by net revenues.

The performance of the Company's portfolio is not measured against an equity index benchmark. The Investment Manager's asset allocation process pays little attention to the country and regional compositions of the main global utilities index, and the global listed infrastructure indices which are typically dominated by utilities. The Directors, therefore, review portfolio performance against a number of equity market indices, including the MSCI World Utilities Index and the S&P Global Infrastructure Index which serve as reference points, and ratios to understand the impact of gearing, currencies, sub-sector performance, geographical allocations and stock selection decisions on the Company's overall investment performance. Stock selection is measured against relevant local and regional indices and monitored by the Board. The Directors also review the level of the share price premium/discount to NAV and the level and composition of ongoing charges incurred.

The net revenue return per share for the financial year was 4.97p, a 9.3% decline from the previous year due to the impact of COVID-19 on some companies' ability to pay their dividends as originally intended (please refer to the Investment Manager's Report for detail). Income declined by 7.6% year-over-year, and expenses charged to the Company's revenue account increased slightly during the year. The ongoing charges ratio declined to 1.48% (from 1.68% last year), due primarily to the reduction in the Investment Manager's fee in March 2019.

The ongoing charges figure is calculated in accordance with AIC recommended methodology using the charges for the current year and the average NAV during the year of £153,209,000.

Principal and emerging risks associated with the Company

The Directors have carried out a robust assessment of the principal and emerging risks facing the Company, including those that would threaten its business model, future performance, solvency and liquidity, and believe the principal risks facing the Company are summarised below along with, where appropriate, the steps taken by the Board to monitor and mitigate such risks. The specific financial risks associated with foreign currencies, interest rates, market prices, liquidity, credit, valuations and the use of derivatives - which may or may not be material to the Company - are described in note 16 to the Financial Statements. The Board conducts this robust assessment by reviewing a detailed Risk Matrix on at least an annual basis. A full analysis of the Directors' review of internal control is set out in the Corporate Governance Statement on page 27 of the Annual Report & Accounts.

COVID-19

The emerging risk to affect the Company's activities during the year under review was the occurrence of the COVID-19 pandemic. The Board conducted additional diligence and met more frequently to assess the impact on the Company's operational and investment performance and income which is explained in more detail in the Chairman's Statement and the Investment Manager's Report above. The Investment Manager and the Company's other third-party service providers moved to remote working with little impact on the Company's operations. The Board is comfortable that the Company's third-party service providers' business continuity plans are sufficient to mitigate ongoing risks posed by COVID-19.

Performance and market risk

The performance of the Company depends primarily on the investment strategy, asset allocation and stock selection decisions taken by the Investment Manager within the parameters and constraints imposed by the Company's investment policy. The investment policy guidelines can only be materially changed by proposing an ordinary resolution at a General Meeting for shareholders' approval. The Company invests in securities which are listed on recognised stock exchanges so it is regularly exposed to market risk and the value of the Company's portfolio can fluctuate, particularly over the short-term, in response to developments in financial markets. The Board has put in place limits on the Company's gearing, portfolio concentration, and the use of derivatives which it believes to be appropriate to ensure that the Company's investment portfolio is adequately diversified and to manage risk. The Board meets formally at least four times a year with the Investment Manager to review the Company's strategy and performance, the composition of the investment portfolio and the management of risk. The Board examines the sources of investment performance, which are described in attribution analyses prepared by the Investment Manager's Head of Risk for each Meeting, volatility measures, liquidity and currency exposure, and the Company's gearing. The Investment Manager's Head of Risk monitors and helps to manage portfolio risk.

Income risk

The Company is committed to paying its shareholders regular quarterly dividends and to increasing the level of dividends paid over time. The dividends that the Company can pay depend on the income it receives on its investment portfolio, the extent of its distributable reserves and, to a lesser extent, its level of gearing and accounting policies. Cuts in dividend rates by portfolio companies, a change in the tax treatment of the dividends received by the Company, a significant reduction in the Company's level of gearing or a change to its accounting policies, under which 50% of the investment management fee is currently charged to capital, could adversely affect the net income available to pay dividends.

The Board monitors the net income forecast, including each component revenue and expense line item, prepared by the Administrator for quarterly Board meetings. These are discussed in some detail to assess the Investment Manager's level of confidence in the income growth profile of the portfolio and to mitigate any risk of revenue shortfall relative to expectations.

The Board applied successfully to cancel the Company's share premium account in November 2016 and the resulting special reserve is available, when the Board considers it appropriate, to augment the net income available to pay dividends to shareholders.

Liquidity risk

While the Company invests principally in highly liquid securities listed on recognised stock exchanges in developed economies, it also invests to a limited extent in securities traded in emerging markets and in securities which are more thinly traded. As the Company is a closed-end investment company it does not run the risk of having to liquidate investments on unattractive terms to meet redemptions by investors although it is exposed to price risk; that is, that it will be unable to liquidate a position in a thinly traded security at the valuation at which it is carried in the Company's accounts. It is also exposed to a risk that its prime broker, Citigroup Global Markets Limited ("Citigroup"), which provides a flexible borrowing facility, could request that borrowings be repaid with three days' notice. The Board reviews the liquidity profile of the Company's portfolio on a regular basis. The Investment Manager's Head of Risk also keeps the liquidity risk profile of the Company's portfolio under close review. The liquidity analysis regularly shows that, if required, 98% of the portfolio could be liquidated within five business days assuming trades to accomplish this accounted for up to 30% of average daily trading volumes.

Operational risks

In common with most other investment trusts, the Company has no executive directors, no executive management and no employees. The Company delegates key operational tasks to third-party service providers which are specialists in their fields: the management of the Company's investment portfolio to the Investment Manager, Ecofin Advisors Limited; the preparation and maintenance of the Company's Financial Statements and maintenance of its records to the Administrator and Company Secretary, BNP Paribas Securities Services S.C.A and BNP Paribas Secretarial Services Limited, respectively; the worldwide custody of the Company's assets to Citigroup; and the safekeeping and oversight services to Citibank International Limited ("Citibank") as Depositary. The Board reviews the performance of these third-party service providers and their risk control procedures on a regular basis as well as the terms on which they provide services to the Company.

Relationship with the Investment Manager

During the financial year, the Company's Investment Manager, Tortoise Advisors UK Limited, was renamed Ecofin Advisors Limited ("Ecofin UK"). Ecofin UK remains a separate entity that is regulated by the FCA and registered with the SEC, indirectly wholly owned by TortoiseEcofin Investments, LLC, (previously Tortoise Investments, LLC), a US-based firm which owns a family of investment management companies (collectively "TortoiseEcofin") (previously Tortoise). TortoiseEcofin provides support across a variety of functions and integrated teams across the firm allow for collaboration and synergies.

The Directors note the continuity of service from the existing team of investment professionals managing and involved with the Company's assets and continue to monitor the integration of the two businesses and the development of synergies, priorities and relations.

Viability statement

The UK Financial Reporting Council ("FRC") maintains the UK's Corporate Governance Code (the "Code") to promote high quality corporate governance and reporting. Under the Code, the Directors are required to state that in their opinion the Company's resources are adequate for it to continue in business for at least twelve months from the date of the Financial Statements and, therefore, it is appropriate that the Financial Statements be prepared on a going concern basis. This statement appears on page 22 in the Directors' Report in the Annual Report & Accounts.

In accordance with provision 31 of the 2018 Code, the Directors are also required to assess the prospects for the Company over a longer period than the twelve months referred to in the going concern guidance and statement. The Directors have elected to review the viability of the Company for a five year period up to the Annual General Meeting ("AGM") of the Company to be held in 2026 principally because they consider that any investment in the shares of the Company should be made on a medium to long-term basis.

In assessing the viability of the Company over this five year period, the Board has performed a robust assessment of controls over the principal risks. The Board considers, on an ongoing basis, each of the principal risks noted above  and set out in note 16 to the Financial Statements below. The Board has evaluated scenarios of possible future circumstances, including a significant and prolonged fall in equity markets and a material increase in expenses, and considered the latest assessment of portfolio liquidity. The Board monitors income and expense projections for the Company, with most of the expenses being predictable and modest in comparison with the assets of the Company. A significant proportion of the Company's expenses are investment management fees based on the Company's NAV and these would naturally decline if the market value of the Company's investments were to fall. The Board has also taken into consideration the operational resilience of its service providers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Based on the above, their assessment of the nature of the Company, its investment policy and financial resources, and with careful consideration given to the current market situation, the Board has concluded that there is a reasonable expectation that the Company will be able to continue to operate and meet its liabilities as they fall due over the next five years.. 

Additional risks

In the opinion of the Directors, an investment in the shares of the Company entails a greater than average degree of risk, in the context of the investment trust industry, because the Company employs gearing, as explained on page 13 of the Annual Report & Accounts. In addition to the risks borne by the Company described above, investors in the shares of the Company are exposed to risks due to the investment policy (described on page 12 of the Annual Report & Accounts) of the Company. These are risks that cannot be mitigated without changing the investment policy, and one risk, the risk that the price of a share might trade at a substantial discount to its NAV, reflects the demand for the Company's shares in the secondary market.

Gearing and capital structure

The Board has authorised the Investment Manager to utilise gearing, in the form of borrowings under the Company's prime brokerage facility, although the gearing is not structural in nature and can be reduced at any time. Whilst the use of gearing will enhance the NAV per share when the value of the Company's assets is rising, it will have the opposite effect when the underlying asset value is falling. In the event that the prime brokerage facility were to be renegotiated or terminated, the Company might not be able to finance its borrowings on as favourable terms.

Non-OECD or emerging markets

The Company's policy on diversification, noted on page 13 of the Annual Report & Accounts, permits the Investment Manager to invest up to 10% of its investments, measured at the time of acquisition, in the securities of companies incorporated in countries which are not members of the OECD - emerging markets - and quoted on stock exchanges in such countries. Investment in emerging markets may involve a higher degree of risk and expose the Company to, among other things, less well developed legal and corporate governance systems, a greater threat of unilateral government action with respect to regulation and taxation, and a higher risk of political, social and economic instability than an investment in developed, OECD markets. These risks are mitigated through diversification and fundamental analysis.

Foreign exchange risk

As noted in the investment policy on page 12 of the Annual Report & Accounts, the Company's Financial Statements are prepared in sterling and its shares are denominated in sterling. Many of the Company's investments, however, are denominated in currencies other than sterling and, as a result, the value of the Company's investment portfolio is exposed to fluctuations in exchange rates. Although the Company may hedge non-sterling exposure from time to time, it is not the Company's policy to try to minimise or eliminate foreign exchange risk as over the long-term this could restrict the investment returns potentially available to sterling-based investors in international securities. There is a risk for the NAV, therefore, if sterling appreciates significantly against foreign currencies.

Political risk

The Board has considered the political uncertainties prevailing in the UK while the Brexit process evolves and the risks associated with potential changes to regulations, laws and/or taxes. The Board continues to believe that the Company's strategy of investing in an internationally diversified portfolio of companies is the correct model to achieve its investment objectives.

Share price premium/discount to NAV

While some investors may view the opportunity to purchase a share of the Company at a discount to its NAV as attractive, the volatility of the price of a share and the premium/discount adds to the risks associated with an investment in the Company's shares. The Directors review the level of the premium/discount on a regular basis and will use their ability as granted by shareholders to address any sustained or significant discount or premium to NAV, as and when it is appropriate, through the repurchase or issuance of stock. The repurchase of stock will be subject to, but not limited to, market conditions and availability of cash resources.

The external Auditor

The Committee notes the FRC guidance and EU legislation on audit tender and rotation of the Auditor. EY was appointed Auditor to the Company during the initial listing process in September 2016 and signed its first engagement letter on 21 September, 2017 to audit the Company. The Board had intended to hold a tender process before the 2024 year-end, however as the Audit Partner, Caroline Mercer, was due to rotate before the year ended 30 September, 2021, the Company decided to bring this forward. Accordingly, a tender process was held during December 2020 and the Audit Committee recommended the appointment of BDO LLP to the Board in respect of future audits of the Company commencing with the year ending 30 September, 2021. The current Auditor, EY was not invited to tender because its tenure would have expired after the 2023 audit in line with the EU legislation on audit tenders.

Directors' responsibilities statement

The Directors are responsible for preparing the Strategic Report, the Directors' Report and the Financial Statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations.

Company law requires the Directors to prepare Financial Statements for each financial year. Under that law the Directors have elected to prepare the Financial Statements in accordance with United Kingdom Accounting Standards, comprising FRS 102 "The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland", and applicable law (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice ("UK GAAP")). Under company law the Directors must not approve the Financial Statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Company and of the profit or loss of the Company for that period.

In preparing those Financial Statements, the Directors are required to:

• select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;

• make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

• state whether applicable UK Accounting Standards have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the Financial Statements; and

• prepare the Financial Statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Company will continue in business.

The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the Company's transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Company and enable them to ensure that the Financial Statements comply with the Act. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the Company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The Annual Report and Accounts is published on the Investment Manager's website https:// ecofininvest.com/egl   and the Directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information about the Company included on this website. The work carried out by the Auditor does not involve consideration of the maintenance and integrity of this website and, accordingly, the Auditor accepts no responsibility for any changes that may have occurred to the Annual Report and Accounts since it was initially presented on the website.

Directors' confirmation statement

The Directors listed on page 11 of the Annual Report & Accounts as the persons responsible within the Company hereby confirm that, to the best of their knowledge:

a) the Financial Statements within the Annual Report and Accounts of which this statement forms a part have been prepared in accordance with applicable accounting standards and give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Company; and

b) the Management Report, which comprises the Chairman's Statement, Investment Manager's Report, Strategic Report (including risk factors) and note 16 to the Financial Statements, includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and position of the Company, together with the principal risks and uncertainties that it faces.

Having taken advice from the Audit Committee, the Directors consider that the Annual Report and Accounts taken as a whole is fair, balanced and understandable and provides the information necessary for shareholders to assess the Company's position and performance, business model and strategy.

The Directors have reached these conclusions through a process which is described in the Report of the Audit Committee on page 32 and 33 of the Annual Report & Accounts.

On behalf of the Board

David Simpson

Chairman

14 December, 2020

Statement of Comprehensive Income

		Year ended 30 September 2020			Year ended 30 September 2019
	Notes	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000
(Losses)/gains on investments held at fair value through profit or loss	9	-	(7,551)	(7,551)	-	30,841	30,841
Currency (losses)/gains		-	(280)	(280)	-	110	110
Income	2	6,851	-	6,851	7,418	-	7,418
Investment management fees	3	(750)	(750)	(1,500)	(786)	(786)	(1,572)
Administrative expenses	4	(789)	-	(789)	(686)	-	(686)
Research expenses	9	-	-	-	(51)	(51)	(102)
Net return before finance costs and taxation		5,312	(8,581)	(3,269)	5,895	30,114	36,009
Finance costs	5	(57)	(57)	(114)	(90)	(90)	(180)
Net return before taxation		5,255	(8,638)	(3,383)	5,805	30,024	35,829
Taxation	7	(648)	-	(648)	(769)	-	(769)
Net return after taxation		4,607	(8,638)	(4,031)	5,036	30,024	35,060
Return per ordinary share (pence)	8	4.97	(9.31)	(4.34)	5.48	32.68	38.16

The total column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income is the profit and loss account of the Company.

The revenue and capital columns are supplementary to this and are published under guidance from the AIC.

All revenue and capital returns in the above statement derive from continuing operations. No operations were acquired or

discontinued during the year ended 30 September, 2020.

The Company has no other comprehensive income and therefore the net return on ordinary activities after taxation is also the total

comprehensive income for the year.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of the Financial Statements.

Statement of Financial Position

	Notes	As at 30 September 2020 £'000	As at 30 September 2019 £'000
Non-current assets
Equity securities		179,153	168,873
Fixed interest securities		-	2,425
Investments at fair value through profit or loss	9	179,153	171,298
Current assets
Debtors and prepayments	10	2,600	1,072
Cash at bank		-	8,228
		2,600	9,300
Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
Prime brokerage borrowings	11	(22,757)	(18,362)
Other creditors	11	(2,603)	(734)
		(25,360)	(19,096)
Net current liabilities		(22,760)	(9,796)
Net assets		156,393	161,502
Share capital and reserves
Called-up share capital	12	950	919
Share premium account	13	4,956	-
Special reserve		118,338	119,796
Capital reserve	14	32,149	40,787
Revenue reserve		-	-
Total shareholders' funds		156,393	161,502
NAV per ordinary share (pence)	15	164.60	175.79

The Financial Statements were approved by the Board of Directors and authorised for issue on Monday, 14 December, 2020 and were signed on its behalf by:

David Simpson

Chairman

The accompanying notes are an integral part of the Financial Statements.

Statement of Changes in Equity

		For the year ended 30 September 2020
	Notes	Share capital £'000	Share premium account £'000	Special reserve 1 £'000	Capital reserve £'000	Revenue reserve £'000	Total £'000
Balance at 1 October 2019		919	-	119,796	40,787	-	161,502
Return after taxation		-	-	-	(8,638)	4,607	(4,031)
Issue of ordinary shares	12, 13	31	4,956	-	-	-	4,987
Dividends paid	6	-	-	(1,458)	-	(4,607)	(6,065)
Balance at 30 September 2020		950	4,956	118,338	32,149	-	156,393

 

		For the year ended 30 September 2019
	Notes	Share capital £'000	Share premium account £'000	Special reserve 1 £'000	Capital reserve £'000	Revenue reserve £'000	Total £'000
Balance at 1 October 2018		919	-	120,640	10,763	-	132,322
Return after taxation		-	-	-	30,024	5,036	35,060
Dividends paid	6	-	-	(844)	-	(5,036)	(5,880)
Balance at 30 September 2019		919	-	119,796	40,787	-	161,502

1. The special reserve may be used, where the Board considers it appropriate, by the Company for the purposes of paying dividends to shareholders and, in particular, smoothing payments of dividends to shareholders.

The accompanying notes are an integral part of the Financial Statements.

Statement of Cash Flows

	Notes	Year ended 30 September 2020 £'000	Year ended 30 September 2019 £'000
Net return before finance costs and taxation		(3,269)	36,009
Increase/(decrease) in accrued expenses		31	(35)
Overseas withholding tax		(795)	(1,047)
Deposit interest income		(20)	(101)
Dividend income		(6,803)	(7,268)
Fixed interest income		(28)	(49)
Realised gains/(losses) on foreign exchange transactions		280	(110)
Dividends received		6,405	6,674
Deposit interest received		20	101
Fixed interest received		49	28
Interest paid		(114)	(180)
(Losses)/gains on investments		7,551	(30,841)
Increase in other debtors		2	11
Net cash flow from operating activities		3,309	3,192
Investing activities
Purchases of investments		(71,379)	(49,999)
Sales of investments		56,805	59,518
Net cash used in investing activities		(14,574)	9,519
Financing activities
Movement in prime brokerage borrowings		4,299	744
Dividends paid	6	(6,065)	(5,880)
Share issue proceeds		4,987	-
Net cash from financing activities		3,221	(5,136)
(Decrease)/increase in cash		(8,044)	7,575
Analysis of changes in cash during the year
Opening balance		8,228	467
Foreign exchange movement		(184)	186
(Decrease)/increase in cash as above		(8,044)	7,575
Closing balance		-	8,228

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these Financial Statements.

Notes to the Financial Statements

For the year ended 30 September, 2020

1. Accounting policies

(a) Basis of preparation

The Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with the Act, United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice ("UK GAAP"), including the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland ("FRS 102") and with the Statement of Recommended Practice 'Financial Statements of Investment Trust Companies and Venture Capital Trusts' issued in October 2019. The Financial Statements are prepared in sterling which is the functional currency of the Company and rounded to the nearest £'000. They have also been prepared on a going concern basis and approval as an investment trust has been granted by HMRC.

The Financial Statements have been prepared on a going concern basis. In forming this opinion, the Directors have considered the potential impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the going concern and viability of the Company and, especially in light of the pandemic, the mitigation measures which key service providers, including the Investment Manager, have in place to maintain operational resilience. The Directors have reviewed the level of borrowings, income and expense projections and the liquidity of the investment portfolio in making their assessment. Please refer to the Chairman's Statement and the Investment Manager's Report for further detail.

Significant accounting judgements, estimates and assumptions

The preparation of financial statements requires the use of certain significant accounting judgements, estimates and assumptions which requires management to exercise its judgement in the process of applying the accounting policies and are continually evaluated. Special dividends are assessed and credited to capital or revenue according to their circumstances and are considered to require significant judgement. The Directors do not consider there to be any significant estimates within the Financial Statements.

(b) Income

Income from investments, including taxes deducted at source, is included in revenue by reference to the date on which the investment is quoted ex-dividend. Special dividends are credited to capital or revenue, according to the circumstances. The fixed returns on debt securities are recognised on a time apportionment basis so as to reflect the effective yield on the debt securities. Interest receivable from cash and short-term deposits is treated on an accruals basis.

(c) Expenses

All expenses are accounted for on an accruals basis. Expenses are charged to the revenue account except where they directly relate to the acquisition or disposal of an investment, in which case they are charged to the capital account; in addition, expenses are charged to the capital account where a connection with the maintenance or enhancement of the value of the investments can be demonstrated. In this respect the management fee and overdraft interest have been allocated 50% to the capital account and 50% to the revenue account.

(d) Taxation

The charge for taxation is based on the profit for the year to date and takes into account, if applicable, taxation deferred because of timing differences between the treatment of certain items for taxation and accounting purposes. Deferred taxation is provided using the liability method on all timing differences, calculated at the rate at which it is anticipated the timing differences will reverse. Deferred tax assets are recognised only when, on the basis of available evidence, it is more likely than not that there will be taxable profits in future against which the deferred tax asset can be offset.

Due to the Company's status as an investment trust company and the intention to continue meeting the conditions required to obtain approval in the foreseeable future, the Company has not provided deferred tax on any capital gains and losses arising on the revaluation or disposal of investments.

The tax effect of different items of income/gain and expenditure/loss is allocated between capital and revenue within the Statement of Comprehensive Income on the same basis as the particular item to which it relates using the Company's effective rate of tax for the year, based on the marginal basis.

(e) Valuation of investments

For the purposes of preparing the Financial Statements, the Company has applied Sections 11 and 12 of FRS 102 in respect of financial instruments. All investments are measured initially and subsequently at fair value and transaction costs are expensed immediately. Investment transactions are accounted for on a trade date basis. The fair value of the financial instruments in the Statement of Financial Position is based on their quoted bid price at the reporting date, without deduction of the estimated future selling costs. Changes in the fair value of investments held at fair value through profit or loss and gains and losses on disposal are recognised in the Statement of Comprehensive Income as "Gains on investments held at fair value through profit or loss". Also included within this caption are transaction costs in relation to the purchase or sale of investments, including the difference between the purchase price of an investment and its bid price at the date of purchase.

(f) Cash and cash equivalents

Cash comprises cash in hand and demand deposits. Cash equivalents are short-term, highly liquid investments that are readily convertible to known amounts of cash and that are subject to insignificant risk of change in value.

(g) Borrowings

Short-term borrowings, which comprise of prime brokerage borrowings, are recognised initially at the fair value of the consideration received, net of any issue expenses, and subsequently at amortised cost using the effective interest method. The finance costs, being the difference between the net proceeds of borrowings and the total amount of payments required to be made in respect of those borrowings, accrue evenly over the life of the borrowings and are allocated 50% to revenue and 50% to capital.

(h) Segmental reporting

The Directors are of the opinion that the Company is engaged in a single segment of business activity, being investment business. Consequently, no business segmental analysis is provided.

(i) Nature and purpose of reserves

Share premium account

The balance classified as share premium includes the premium above nominal value received by the Company on issuing shares net of issue costs.

Special reserve

The special reserve arose following court approval in November 2016 to transfer £123,609,000 from the share premium account. This reserve is distributable and may be used, where the Board considers it appropriate, by the Company for the purposes of paying dividends to shareholders and, in particular, augmenting or smoothing payments of dividends to shareholders. There is no guarantee that the Board will in fact make use of this reserve for the purpose of the payment of dividends to shareholders. The special reserve can also be used to fund the cost of share buy-backs.

Capital reserve

Gains and losses on disposal of investments and changes in fair values of investments are transferred to the capital account. Foreign exchange differences of a capital nature are also transferred to the capital account. The capital element of the management fee and relevant finance costs are charged to this account. Any associated tax relief is also credited to this account.

Revenue reserve

This reserve reflects all income and costs which are recognised in the revenue column of the Statement of Comprehensive Income.

The Company's special reserve, capital reserve and revenue reserve may be distributed by way of dividend.

(j) Foreign currency

Monetary assets and liabilities and non-monetary assets held at fair value in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the rates of exchange ruling at the Statement of Financial Position date. Transactions involving foreign currencies are converted at the rate ruling on the date of the transaction. Gains and losses on the translation of foreign currencies are recognised in the revenue or capital account of the Statement of Comprehensive Income depending on the nature of the underlying item.

(k) Dividends payable

Dividends are recognised in the period in which they are paid.

2. Income

	Year ended 30 September 2020 £'000	Year ended 30 September 2019 £'000
Income from investments (revenue account)
UK dividends	944	824
Overseas dividends	5,410	5,908
Overseas fixed interest	28	49
Stock dividends	449	536
	6,831	7,317
Other income (revenue account)
Deposit interest	20	101
Total income	6,851	7,418

During the year ended 30 September, 2020 the Company received no special dividends (30 September, 2019: £177,000, all of which was recognised as revenue and included within the income from investments figure above).

3. Investment management fee

	Year ended 30 September 2020			Year ended 30 September 2019
	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000
Investment management fee	750	750	1,500	786	786	1,572

The Company has an agreement with Ecofin UK for the provision of investment management services.

The management fee for the year ended 30 September, 2020 was calculated, on a quarterly basis, at 1.00% per annum of the net assets of the Company. Until 5 March, 2019 the management fee was calculated, on a quarterly basis, at 1.25% per annum of the net assets of the Company. The management fee is chargeable 50% to revenue and 50% to capital. During the year £1,500,000 (30 September, 2019: £1,572,000) of investment management fees were earned by the Investment Manager, with a balance of £391,000 (30 September, 2019: £404,000) being payable to Ecofin UK at the year-end.

4. Administrative expenses

	Year ended 30 September 2020 £'000	Year ended 30 September 2019 £'000
Administration	265	261
Directors' remuneration	113	107
Auditor's remuneration:
fees payable to the Company's Auditor for the audit of the Company's Annual Accounts	42	31
- non-audit services
fees payable to the Company's Auditor and its associates for iXBRL tagging services	-	2
Printing and postage	27	18
Directors' liability insurance	5	5
Depositary	68	65
Regulatory	20	35
Employer's National Insurance contributions	14	12
Registrar	55	40
Advisory and legal services	163	104
Other expenses	17	6
	789	686

All of the expenses above are inclusive of VAT, where applicable.

Advisory and legal service fees include: fees in respect of sponsored research and other marketing resources, any legal fees, and a substantial accrual for expenses relating to the recovery of excess taxes withheld on foreign dividends.

5. Finance costs

	Year ended 30 September 2020			Year ended 30 September 2019
	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000
Prime brokerage borrowings - interest	57	57	114	90	90	180

6. Dividends on ordinary shares

	Year ended 30 September 2020 £'000	Year ended 30 September 2019 £'000
Fourth interim for 2018 of 1.60p (paid 30 November, 2018)	-	1,470
First interim for 2019 of 1.60p (paid 28 February, 2019)	-	1,470
Second interim for 2019 of 1.60p (paid 31 May, 2019)	-	1,470
Third interim for 2019 of 1.60p (paid 30 August, 2019)	-	1,470
Fourth interim for 2019 of 1.60p (paid 29 November, 2019)	1,470	-
First interim for 2020 of 1.65p (paid 28 February, 2020)	1,516	-
Second interim for 2020 of 1.65p (paid 29 May, 2020)	1,528	-
Third interim for 2020 of 1.65p (paid 28 August, 2020)	1,551	-
	6,065	5,880

The proposed fourth interim dividend for 2020 has not been included as a liability in these Financial Statements as it was not payable until after the reporting date.

Set out below are the total dividends paid and proposed in respect of the financial period, which is the basis on which the requirements of Section 1158-1159 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010 are considered. The revenue available for distribution by way of dividend for the year was £4,607,000 (30 September, 2019: £5,036,000).

	Year ended 30 September 2020 £'000	Year ended 30 September 2019 £'000
Three interim dividends of 1.65p each (2019: three interim dividends of 1.60p each)	4,595	4,410
Proposed fourth interim dividend 1.65p (2019: 1.60p)	1,579	1,470
	6,174	5,880

The amount reflected above for the cost of the proposed fourth interim dividend for 2020 is based on 95,693,423 ordinary shares, being the number of ordinary shares in issue at the record date, being 30 October, 2020.

7. Taxation

(a) Analysis of charge for the period

	Year ended 30 September 2020			Year ended 30 September 2019
	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000
Analysis of charge for the period
Overseas tax suffered	882	-	882	1,119	-	1,119
Overseas tax reclaimable	(234)	-	(234)	(350)	-	(350)
Total tax charge for the period	648	-	648	769	-	769

(b) Factors affecting the tax charge for the period

The tax assessed for the year is lower than the standard rate of corporation tax rate of 19.00% (2019: 19.00%). The differences are explained as follows:

	Year ended 30 September 2020			Year ended 30 September 2019
	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000	Revenue £'000	Capital £'000	Total £'000
Net profit on ordinary activities before taxation	5,255	(8,638)	(3,383)	5,805	30,024	35,829
Net return multiplied by the standard rate of corporation tax of 19.00% (30 September, 2019: 19.00%)	998	(1,641)	(643)	1,103	5,705	6,808
Effects of:
Non-taxable UK dividends	(204)	-	(204)	(216)	-	(216)
Non-taxable overseas dividends	(932)	-	(932)	(971)	-	(971)
Tax effect of expensed double taxation relief	(6)	-	(6)	(23)	-	(23)
Expenses not deductible for tax purposes	1	-	1	-	10	10
Movement in unutilised expenses	143	153	296	107	166	273
Other capital returns	-	1,488	1,488	-	(5,881)	(5,881)
Overseas tax suffered	882	-	882	1,119	-	1,119
Overseas tax reclaimable	(234)	-	(234)	(350)	-	(350)
Total tax charge	648	-	648	769	-	769

(c) Factors that may affect future tax charges

No provision for deferred tax has been made in the accounting year. The Company has not provided for deferred tax on capital gains or losses arising on the revaluation or disposal of investments as it is exempt from tax on these items because of its status as an investment trust company.

At the year-end, the Company has, for taxation purposes only, accumulated unrelieved management expenses and loan relationship deficits of £1,308,000 (30 September, 2019: £879,000). A deferred tax asset in respect of this has not been recognised and these expenses will only be utilised if the Company has profits chargeable to corporation tax in the future. It is considered unlikely that the Company will generate such profits and therefore no deferred tax asset has been recognised.

8. Return per ordinary share

	Year ended 30 September 2020		Year ended 30 September 2019
	£'000	p	£'000	p
Returns are based on the following figures:
Revenue return	4,607	4.97	5,036	5.48
Capital return	(8,638)	(9.31)	30,024	32.68
Total return	(4,031)	(4.34)	35,060	38.16
Weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue		92,774,379		91,872,247

9. Investments

	As at 30 September 2020 £'000	As at 30 September 2019 £'000
Held at fair value through profit or loss:
Opening book cost	136,702	140,644
Opening investment holding gains	34,596	9,455
Opening fair value	171,298	150,099
Analysis of transactions made during the year
Purchases at cost	73,666	49,876
Sales proceeds received	(58,260)	(59,518)
(Losses)/gains on investments	(7,551)	30,841
Closing fair value	179,153	171,298
Closing book cost	159,259	136,702
Closing investment gains	19,894	34,596
Closing fair value	179,153	171,298

The Company received £58,260,000 (2019: £59,518,000) from investments sold in the period. The book cost of these investments when they were purchased was £51,109,000 (2019: £53,818,000). These investments have been revalued over time and until they were sold any unrealised gains/losses were included in the fair value of the investments.

Transaction costs

During the year expenses were incurred in acquiring or disposing of investments classified as fair value through profit or loss. These have been expensed through capital and are included within losses on investments in the Statement of Comprehensive Income. The total costs were as follows:

	As at 30 September 2020 £'000	As at 30 September 2019 £'000
Purchases	88	77
Sales	32	34
	120	111

The above transaction costs are calculated in line with the AIC SORP. The transaction costs in the Company's Key Information Document are calculated on a different basis and in line with the PRIIPs regulations.

The Company agreed with the Investment Manager that, with effect from the passing of the continuation vote at the AGM in March 2019, the Company would cease to pay a contribution to the Investment Manager's research costs.

10. Other debtors and receivables

	As at 30 September 2020 £'000	As at 30 September 2019 £'000
Amounts due from brokers	1,455	-
Prepayments and accrued income	1,145	1,072
	2,600	1,072

11. Creditors: amounts falling due within one year

(a)  Prime brokerage borrowings

The Investment Manager is authorised to utilise gearing of up to 25% of net assets. The Company's prime broker, Citigroup, provides a flexible borrowing arrangement, such that borrowings can be re-paid at any time. The rate of interest on the borrowings depends on the currency of the borrowing but is generally 50 basis points over the applicable LIBOR rate.

(b)  Other creditors

	As at 30 September 2020 £'000	As at 30 September 2019 £'000
Amounts due to brokers	1,838	-
Other creditors	765	734
	2,603	734

12. Ordinary share capital

	As at 30 September 2020		As at 30 September 2019
	Shares	£'000	Shares	£'000
Issued and fully paid
Ordinary shares of 1p each at 1 October	91,872,247	919	91,872,247	919
Issue of new ordinary shares	3,141,176	31	-	-
Ordinary shares of 1p each at 30 September	95,013,423	950	91,872,247	919

The Company was admitted to the Main Market of the London Stock Exchange on 26 September, 2016. The total number of ordinary shares in the Company in issue immediately following admission was 91,872,247, each with equal voting rights. During the year, the Company issued 3,141,176 (2019: nil) ordinary shares with net proceeds of £4,987,000 (2019: £nil).

13. Share premium account

	As at 30 September 2020 £'000	As at 30 September 2019 £'000
At 1 October	-	-
Issue of shares	4,956	-
At 30 September	4,956	-

14. Capital reserve

	As at 30 September 2020 £'000	As at 30 September 2019 £'000
At 30 September	40,787	10,763
Movement in investment holdings gains	(14,702)	25,141
Gains on realisation of investments at fair value	7,151	5,700
Currency (losses)/gains	(280)	110
Investment management fees	(750)	(786)
Research expenses	-	(51)
Finance costs	(57)	(90)
At 30 September	32,149	40,787

15. NAV per ordinary share

The NAV attributable to the ordinary shares and the NAV per ordinary share at the year-end were as follows:

	As at 30 September 2020	As at 30 September 2019
NAV attributable (£'000)	156,393	161,502
Number of ordinary shares in issue (note 12)	95,013,423	91,872,247
NAV per share (p)	164.60	175.79

16. Financial instruments and capital disclosures

Risk management policies and procedures

The investment objectives of the Company are to achieve a high, secure dividend yield on its investment portfolio and to realise long-term growth in the capital value of the portfolio for the benefit of shareholders, while taking care to preserve shareholders' capital.

The Company's financial instruments comprise:

• equity shares held in accordance with the Company's investment objective and policies;

• cash and liquid resources as well as short-term receivables and payables that arise from its operations; and

• borrowings in various currencies to finance operations.

The Company may enter into derivative contracts in order to manage the risks arising from its investment activities. As at the year-end there were no derivative contracts outstanding.

The Board sets out its investment policies, including its policies on gearing and diversification, in the Strategic Report beginning on page 12 of the Annual Report & Accounts. The Board and the Company's Investment Manager consider and review the financial risks inherent in managing the Company's assets and these are detailed below.

Market price risk

The Company's investment portfolio is subject to fluctuations, volatility and the vagaries of market prices. The Directors seek to mitigate this risk by ensuring proper controls exist through the Investment Management Agreement for maintaining a diversified portfolio of the securities of utility and other infrastructure companies and ensuring that there are balances within the portfolio by geography, sub-sector and types of instrument. If the fair value of the Company's investments at year-end (see portfolio holdings on page 10 of the Annual Report & Accounts) had increased or decreased by 10% then it would have had an effect on the Group's capital return and equity equal to £17,915,000 (30 September, 2019: £17,130,000).

Foreign currency risk

The value of the Company's assets and the total return earned by the Company's shareholders can be significantly affected by foreign exchange movements as most of the Company's assets are denominated in currencies other than sterling, the currency in which the Company's accounts are prepared. It is not the Company's policy to try to minimise or eliminate foreign exchange risk; over the long-term this could restrict the investment returns potentially available to sterling-based investors in international securities. There is a risk for the NAV and shareholders, therefore, if sterling appreciates significantly against foreign currencies. This risk is partially offset by the Company's borrowings in currencies other than sterling.

	As at 30 September 2020
	Investments £'000	Net monetary assets/(liabilities) £'000	Total currency exposure £'000
Australian dollar	12,984	(1,741)	11,243
Brazilian real	-	-	-
Canadian dollar	16,225	(1,135)	15,090
Chinese renminbi	-	-	-
Euro	65,887	(8,043)	57,844
Hong Kong dollar	5,539	(653)	4,886
Philippine peso	-	14	14
Sterling	20,179	(2,354)	17,825
Swiss franc	-	25	25
US dollar	58,339	(8,873)	49,466
Total	179,153	(22,760)	156,393

	As at 30 September 2019
	Investments £'000	Net monetary assets/(liabilities) £'000	Total currency exposure £'000
Australian dollar	5,046	261	5,307
Brazilian real	950	-	950
Canadian dollar	5,399	102	5,501
Chinese renminbi	4,842	34	4,876
Euro	64,454	(3,301)	61,153
Hong Kong dollar	-	556	556
Philippine peso	-	12	12
Sterling	19,842	(15,137)	4,705
Swiss franc	2,416	1,507	3,923
US dollar	68,349	6,170	74,519
Total	171,298	(9,796)	161,502

A 10% rise or decline of sterling against foreign currency denominated (i.e. non-sterling) assets held at the year-end would have decreased/increased the total return and NAV by £13,857,000 or 8.9% (30 September, 2019: £15,617,000 or 9.7%). This is considered to be a reasonable illustration based on the volatility of exchange rates during the year.

16. Financial instruments and capital disclosures

Interest rate risk

The Company is only exposed to significant interest rate risk through its borrowings with Citigroup Global Markets Limited.

Borrowings varied throughout the period as part of a Board endorsed policy and at year-end amounted to the equivalent of £22,757,000 (30 September, 2019: £18,362,000) in a variety of currencies. All of these borrowings were at floating rates of interest.

If this level of borrowing was maintained for the year, a 1% increase/decrease in LIBOR would decrease/increase the revenue return by £114,000 (30 September, 2019: £92,000) and decrease/increase the capital return by £114,000 (30 September, 2019: £92,000). In the event that the prime brokerage facility were to be renegotiated or terminated, the Company may not be able to finance its borrowings on as favourable terms and this risk is monitored.

The interest rates on prime brokerage borrowings varied by currency from -0.16% to 3.27% during the year ended 30 September, 2020 (30 September, 2019: the range was 0.45% to 4.82%).

The Company's fixed-income portfolio at the year-end was valued at £nil (30 September, 2019: £2,425,000). The weighted average effective interest rate on these investments was nil% (30 September, 2019: 6.0%) and the weighted average period to maturity was zero years (30 September, 2019: 2.6 years). A 1% increase or decrease in relevant market interest rates would be expected to decrease or increase the portfolio's value by approximately £nil (30 September, 2019: £24,000), all other factors being equal.

Liquidity risk

The Company's assets mainly comprise readily realisable securities which can be easily sold to meet funding commitments if necessary. A liquidity analysis is prepared on at least a quarterly basis as part of the Investment Manager's report to the Board and the liquidity profile of all securities is reviewed. The Investment Manager reviews the liquidity profile of the investments continuously.

The contractual maturities of the Company's financial liabilities at 30 September, 2020 based on the earliest date on which payment can be required was as follows:

Due within 3 months	As at 30 September 2020 £'000	As at 30 September 2019 £'000
Prime brokerage borrowings	(22,757)	(18,362)
Other creditors	(2,603)	(734)
	(25,360)	(19,096)

Prime brokerage borrowings are repayable on demand.

Credit risk

Credit risk is mitigated by diversifying the counterparties with which the Investment Manager conducts investment transactions. The credit standing of all counterparties is reviewed periodically with limits set on amounts due from any one broker. The Company's exposure to its counterparty for forward currency contracts, Citigroup, at 30 September, 2020 was £nil (30 September, 2019: £nil). There were no items past due or impaired.

The maximum exposure to credit risk at 30 September, 2020 and 30 September, 2019 was considered to be the same as the carrying amount of the financial assets in the Statement of Financial Position.

17. Fair value hierarchy

FRS 102 requires an entity to classify fair value measurements using a fair value hierarchy that reflects the significance of the inputs used in making the measurements. The fair value hierarchy shall have the following levels:

Level 1: unadjusted quoted prices in an active market for identical assets or liabilities that the entity can access at the measurement date;

Level 2: inputs other than quoted prices included within Level 1 that are observable (i.e. developed using market data) for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly; and

Level 3: inputs are unobservable (i.e. for which market data is unavailable) for the asset or liability.

The financial assets and liabilities measured at fair value in the Statement of Financial Position are grouped into the fair value hierarchy at the reporting date as follows:

As at 30 September 2020	Note	Level 1 £'000	Level 2 £'000	Level 3 £'000	Total £'000
Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Quoted equities	a)	179,153	-	-	179,153
Quoted bonds	b)	-	-	-	-
Net fair value		179,153	-	-	179,153
As at 30 September 2019	Note	Level 1 £'000	Level 2 £'000	Level 3 £'000	Total £'000
Financial assets at fair value through profit or loss
Quoted equities	a)	168,873	-	-	168,873
Quoted bonds	b)	-	2,425	-	2,425
Net fair value		168,873	2,425	-	171,298

a) Equities and preference shares

The fair value of the Company's investments in equities and preference shares has been determined by reference to their quoted bid prices at the reporting date. Equities and preference shares included in Fair Value Level 1 are actively traded on recognised stock exchanges.

b) Quoted bonds

The fair value of the Company's investments in bonds is determined by reference to their quoted bid prices at the reporting date. There were no bonds held during the year. In the prior year, bonds included in Fair Value Level 2 were corporate bonds. Investments categorised as Level 2 are not considered to trade in active markets.

18. Analysis of changes in net debt

	As at 30 September 2019 £'000	Currency differences £'000	Cash flows £'000	As at 30 September 2020 £'000
Cash and short-term deposits	8,228	(184)	(8,044)	-
Debt due within one year	(18,362)	(96)	(4,299)	(22,757)
	(10,134)	(280)	(12,343)	(22,757)
	As at 30 September 2018 £'000	Currency differences £'000	Cash flows £'000	As at 30 September 2019 £'000
Cash and short-term deposits	467	186	7,575	8,228
Debt due within one year	(17,542)	(76)	(744)	(18,362)
	(17,075)	110	6,831	(10,134)

A statement reconciling the movement in net funds to the net cash flow has not been presented as there are no differences from the above analysis.

19. Related party transactions and transactions with the Investment Manager

Fees payable during the year to the Directors and their interests in shares of the Company are considered to be related party transactions and are disclosed within the Directors' Remuneration Report on pages 30 to 32 of the Annual Report & Accounts. The balance of fees due to Directors at the year-end was £nil (30 September, 2019: £nil).

The Company has an agreement with Ecofin UK for the provision of investment management services. Details of fees earned during the year and balances outstanding at the year-end are disclosed in note 3 above.

20. Capital management policies and procedures

The Company's investment objective is to achieve a high, secure dividend yield on its portfolio and to realise long-term growth in the capital value of the portfolio for the benefit of shareholders.

The capital of the Company consists of debt, comprising prime brokerage borrowings, and equity, comprising issued capital, reserves and retained earnings. The Company manages its capital to ensure that it will be able to continue as a going concern while maximising the return to shareholders through the optimisation of the debt and equity balance.

The Board monitors and reviews the broad structure of the Company's capital on an ongoing basis. This review includes:

• the planned level of gearing which takes into account the Investment Manager's views on the market;

• the level of equity shares in issue; and

• the extent to which revenue in excess of that which is required to be distributed should be retained.

The Company is not subject to any externally imposed capital requirements.

		21. The figures and financial information for the year ended 30 September, 2020 have been extracted from the latest published Financial Statements and do not constitute the statutory accounts for that year as defined in Section 434 of the Act.  Those Financial Statements have been delivered to the Registrar of Companies and included the Report of the Auditors which was unqualified and did not contain a statement under Section 498 of the Act. This Annual Financial Report Announcement does not constitute statutory accounts for the year ended 30 September, 2020 as defined in Section 434 of the Act.
		22. The Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 September, 2020 will be posted to shareholders in January 2021 and thereafter copies will be available upon request at the Company's Registered Office: 10 Harewood Avenue, London, NW1 6AA.  The Annual Report and Accounts will also be available on the Investment Manager's website, www.ecofininvest.com/egl, from today.  A copy of the Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 30 September, 2020 has been submitted to the National Storage Mechanism of the FCA and will shortly be available for inspection at: https://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism. The Company's AGM will be held on Tuesday, 9 March, 2021. In light of the ongoing social distancing requirements and regional tier system implemented by the government to manage the impact of COVID-19, the Board has taken the decision to hold this year's AGM as a closed meeting. Accordingly, shareholders, their proxies and corporate representatives will not be permitted to attend the meeting and are instead encouraged to submit their votes by appointing the Chairman as their proxy. The health and safety of shareholders, attendees and the wider public is of the utmost importance and the Board has made this decision in order to protect public health and safety. Given the AGM will be closed to shareholders, the Investment Manager intends on holding a webinar on Tuesday, 9 March, 2021 at 9.00am in order to provide an overview of the Company's performance for the year ended 30 September, 2020. Shareholders are invited to submit any questions they have in advance to the Company Secretary at [e-mail] by close of business on Friday, 5 March, 2021. If you wish to attend the investor webinar, you should submit your name and e-mail address to [e-mail] by close of business on Friday, 5 March, 2021. An invitation will then be emailed to you. Please note that you will need an e-mail account and access to a computer in order to access the webinar.

For further information, please contact:

Elspeth Dick, CFA

Ecofin Advisors Limited

Telephone: [phone]

Gemma Metson

BNP Paribas Secretarial Services Limited

Company Secretary

Telephone: [phone]

14 DECEMBER, 2020

 

 

END

 

 

FR FLFFTFLLSLII