Successful Sale of Harland & Wolff
28 January 2025
THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION
Riverstone Credit Opportunities Income
Successful Sale of Harland & Wolff
Riverstone Credit Opportunities Income ("RCOI" or the "Company"), the LSE-listed energy infrastructure and energy-transition credit investor, announces that following an extensive marketing process run by Rothschild & Co, the business and assets of the Harland & Wolff Group, including all 4 operating yards in Belfast, Appledore, Methil and Arnish, have been sold via a pre-pack administration to its largest customer, Navantia UK. We are very pleased to note that more than 1,000 jobs were secured as a result of this sale.
The assets have been sold for a cash consideration of £69.9m, as well as the waiving of the debt of [£20m] by Navantia UK. Exclusivity was agreed in October 2024, and benefited from an agreement to share pari passu proceeds from a sale on a 50/50 basis to recover that debt funding. As part of the transaction, those rights were waived.
Purchase price consideration along with cash left in the business, after administrative and deal related expenses, will result in net proceeds of c. [£70m] to Riverstone Credit Partners ("RCP") and affiliated funds, including RCOI. The Administrators intend on making an initial distribution to RCP of c.[£44m] in the coming days and have estimated future distributions that will total c. £[26]m over the coming months.
In parallel to the process to sell the operating yards, Rothschild & Co has also run a process to solicit interest in acquiring Harland & Wolff's Islandmagee Gas Storage project. Once constructed and operational, Islandmagee salt dome caverns will have the capacity to hold around 500 million cubic meters of low carbon gas and/or hydrogen, increasing UK gas storage capacity by c. 33%. Given the shortfall on amounts owed and security held over the entirety of Harland & Wolff, RCP and affiliated funds are the equitable owner of Islandmagee. Over the coming days and weeks, RCP will work with its advisors to assess the optimum strategy and likely timing to maximise the value of this highly strategic asset.
Taking into account the proceeds from the Harland & Wolff sale, existing cash balances and the latest estimated valuation of Islandmagee, RCOI confirms a modest reduction on the 30 September independent valuation of its investment of c. 4%. We will update shareholders with additional information regarding distributions and other material developments in the coming weeks.
The transaction was supported by independent advisors: Teneo, who assisted with restructuring advisory and government relations, Rothschild & Co, Bracewell LLP, and Stephenson Harwood LLP.
For Riverstone Credit Opportunities Income Plc:
Adam Weiss
+1 212 271 2953
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J.P. Morgan Cazenove (Corporate Broker) |
+44 (0)20 7742 4000 |
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William Simmonds |
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Jérémie Birnbaum |
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James Bouverat (Sales) |
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Media Contacts:
Buchanan
Helen TarbetHenry WilsonVerity Parker |
Tel: +44 (0) 20 7466 5109Tel: +44 (0) 20 7466 5111Tel: +44 (0) 20 7466 5197Email: rcoi@buchanan.uk.com |
About Riverstone Credit Opportunities Income Plc:
RCOI lends to companies that build and operate the infrastructure used to generate, transport, store and distribute both renewable and conventional sources of energy, and companies that provide services to that infrastructure. RCOI also lends to companies seeking to facilitate the energy transition by decarbonizing the energy, industrial and agricultural sectors, building sustainable infrastructure and reducing or sequestering carbon emissions. The Company seeks to ensure that its investments are having a positive impact on climate change by structuring each deal as either a green loan or a sustainability-linked loan, documented using industry best practices.
As previously announced, Riverstone Investment Group LLC, the SEC registered investment advisor to RCOI, entered into a sub-advisory agreement with Breakwall Investment Advisor LLC (an SEC registered investment advisor), as sub-advisor, to provide investment related services to RCOI on January 1, 2024. Breakwall Capital LP is an independent asset manager that is owned and operated by certain former members of the Riverstone Credit Partners team.
For further details, see https://www.riverstonecoi.com/.
Neither the contents of RCOI's website nor the contents of any website accessible from hyperlinks on the websites (or any other website) is incorporated into, or forms part of, this announcement.
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