Acquisition of two UK wind farms

RNS Number : 2502K

Renewables Infrastructure Grp (The)

23 June 2014

 



23 June 2014

The Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited
("TRIG" or the "Company" and together with the holding company subsidiaries, the "Group")

Acquisition of two UK wind farms - Tallentire and Meikle Carewe

·    Expansion of the TRIG portfolio with the addition of two onshore wind farms in the UK with combined generating capacity of approximately 22MW for an aggregate consideration of £19.1 million for 100% of the equity interests.

·    The acquisitions, acquired from Renewable Energy Systems ("RES"), further diversify TRIG's portfolio, bringing the total number of projects to 24 from the initial portfolio of 18 assets following the IPO in July 2013.

·    The transaction has been funded from the Group's existing cash resources and results in the completion, so far, of four out of the five exclusive investment projects identified in the C share prospectus in March 2014.

Richard Crawford from InfraRed Capital Partners, TRIG's Investment Manager, said:  "The acquisition of these two projects under the right of first offer from RES allows TRIG to continue its growth momentum in both of the leading renewables technologies - wind and solar, and provides further scale to the portfolio."

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TRIG today announces that, in line with the intentions set out in the C share prospectus published in March, it has completed investment in two onshore wind farms in the UK. The investment consideration is approximately £19.1 million. The acquisition price is subject to certain value protections and performance adjustments.

Tallentire Wind Farm is a project with a 12.0MW rated generating capacity near Cockermouth in Cumbria, England consisting of six Vestas V80 2.0MW wind turbines. The project became operational in May 2013 and has an expected 25 year operating life.

Meikle Carewe Wind Farm is a project with a 10.2MW rated generating capacity near Aberdeen in Scotland consisting of 12 Gamesa G52-850kW turbines. The wind farm became operational in July 2013 and has also has a 25 year operating life.

The two projects have been acquired from RES which also developed both sites.  They represent acquisitions under the right of first offer agreement between the Company and RES which was entered into prior to the IPO in July 2013.  The two investments are subject to a single long-term financing facility with current project-level leverage of approximately 59% of the combined enterprise value.  Since the acquisition of the initial portfolio of 18 projects at IPO, the addition of these two projects from RES as well as four solar projects sourced from the broader market have increased TRIG's generating capacity by approximately 23% to over 340MW, the largest among the London-listed renewables investment companies.

TRIG continues to progress a number of additional opportunities for expanding the portfolio in both solar PV and onshore wind to increase further the scale and diversification of the Company.

Enquiries

InfraRed Capital Partners Limited                              [phone]
Richard Crawford
Matt Dimond

Tulchan Communications                                           [phone]
Martha Walsh
Victoria Huxster

Canaccord Genuity Limited                                         [phone]
Andrew Zychowski
Lucy Lewis

Jefferies International Limited                                    [phone]
Gary Gould
Alex Collins

NOTES TO EDITORS:

The Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited (TRIG)

TRIG is a leading renewable energy infrastructure company with a diversified portfolio of onshore wind and solar photovoltaic projects in the UK and Northern Europe. The Company is seeking to provide investors with long-term, stable dividends, while preserving the capital value of its investment portfolio through re-investment of surplus cash flows after payment of dividends. TRIG is targeting an initial annualised dividend of 6 pence per Ordinary Share and aims to increase this dividend progressively in line with inflation over the medium term.

TRIG currently owns a portfolio of 24 wholly-owned assets in the UK, France and the Republic of Ireland, including the two acquisitions announced today with total generating capacity of over 340MW. Eight of the assets are solar PV parks and 16 of the assets are onshore wind farms. The Group is seeking further suitable investment opportunities which fit its stated Investment Policy.

Further details can be found on TRIG's website at www.trig-ltd.com.

Investment Manager

TRIG's Investment Manager is InfraRed Capital Partners Limited (InfraRed). InfraRed is an independent investment business, managing a range of infrastructure and real estate funds and investments. It has a strong record of delivering attractive returns for its investors, with total equity under management of more than US$ 7 billion.  

InfraRed currently has staff of over 100 employees and partners, based mainly in offices in London and with smaller offices in Paris, Sydney, Hong Kong and New York. The infrastructure investment team within the InfraRed Group currently consists of over 50 investment professionals, all of whom have an infrastructure investment background and a broad range of relevant skills, including private equity, structured finance, construction, renewable energy and facilities management.

Since 1998, InfraRed has launched 15 funds including two companies listed on the London Stock Exchange:  HICL Infrastructure Company Limited (HICL) and The Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited (TRIG). To date, six of these funds have been completely or materially realised.

The InfraRed Group has a long and successful proven track record in sourcing, structuring, acquiring, managing and financing infrastructure equity investments. It has been responsible for over 160 infrastructure equity investments for the InfraRed Group (including predecessor organisations) and its funds to date.

InfraRed Capital Partners Limited is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.

Operations Manager

The Operations Manager of the Group is Renewable Energy Systems Limited (RES). RES is one of the world's leading renewable energy developers, with extensive experience in developing, financing, constructing and operating renewable energy infrastructure projects globally across a wide range of low carbon technologies including wind, solar and biomass.

RES has been at the forefront of wind energy development for over 30 years.  Since incorporation, RES has developed and/or constructed more than 130 individual wind farms and PV parks around the world with a combined capacity of over 8,000 MW. 

In recognition of extraordinary business success in growing revenues from international markets, RES was awarded its second Queen's Award for Enterprise in 2013, this time for International Trade. Today, projects developed and/or built by RES are contributing to meeting the needs of a rapidly-evolving energy market and, in doing so, are actively contributing to a more sustainable world.

RES's global headcount totals over 1,000 staff based in thirteen countries across five continents.

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