Foresight Solar Fund Limited : Trading Statement
19 May 2014
Foresight Solar Fund Limited ("The Company")
- The Company confirms that is has signed financing documentation for a £100m debt acquisition facility to fund additional operational solar power plant acquisitions.
- The facility has been agreed jointly with RBC, RBS and Santander.
- The Company has to date invested 88% of its net IPO proceeds in 100MW of operational UK solar assets.
- The 10.7MW Hunters Race asset is expected to be operational shortly which will conclude all possible acquisitions available from its £150m IPO proceeds.
- The Company confirms its intent to deliver a target dividend of 6p per ordinary share in respect of its first financial year.
The Company is pleased to confirm that the proposed acquisition facility outlined in its IPO Prospectus has now reached Financial Close for a total facility size of £100m. This facility will be drawn to fund future operational UK solar power plant acquisitions. It is expected that the facility will be repaid through utilisation of one or more of; excess dividend cover, further equity issuance and/or refinancing with a long-term debt facility.
The providers of the facility are RBC, RBS and Santander.
The Company announced on 13 February 2014 that it had entered into a binding sale and purchase agreement for the acquisition of the 10.7MW Hunter's Race project. Hunter's Race is expected to become operational shortly as a 1.4 ROC asset. This will result in c.100% of net IPO proceeds being invested.
Thus the first asset which will be formally acquired by the Company utilising this debt facility will be the 37MW Kencot, Oxfordshire asset which is currently under construction. Reflecting the Company's preferred risk profile of acquiring operating assets Kencot is expected to become operational later this summer and will qualify under the 1.4 ROC rate.
The Company continues to see a strong pipeline of assets becoming available for acquisition and expects to double its operational capacity in the coming 12 months which today's announcement will facilitate.
The Company continues to confirm its intent to deliver a target dividend of 6p per ordinary share in respect of its first financial year, rising annually with RPI thereafter, and enabling the Company to support its strategy to sustain the NAV, offering the potential for further capital growth.
ENDS
For further information
Sarah Cole scole@foresightgroup.eu 0203 667 8154
Notes to Editors
About Foresight Solar Fund Limited ("The Company" or "FSFL")
FSFL is a Jersey-registered closed-end investment company. The Company invests in ground based UK solar power assets to achieve its objective of providing Shareholders with a sustainable and increasing dividend with the potential for capital growth over the long-term.
The Company raised proceeds of £150m through an initial public offering ("IPO") of shares on the main market of the London Stock Exchange in October 2013.
About Foresight Group
Foresight Group was established in 1984 and today is a leading independent infrastructure and private equity investment manager with over £1 billion of assets under management. As one of the UK's leading solar infrastructure investment teams Foresight funds currently manage over £650 million in 27 separate operating Photovoltaic ("PV") plants in the UK, the USA, Italy and Spain.
In May 2013 Foresight executed an innovative refinancing of its existing UK solar assets through the issue of a £60m London Stock Exchange listed index-linked Solar Bond.
Foresight Group has offices in the UK, the USA and Italy.
The issuer of this announcement warrants that they are solely responsible for the content, accuracy and originality of the information contained therein.
Source: Foresight Solar Fund Limited via Globenewswire
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