REG - Foresight Envr - Disposal of rooftop solar portfolio

Foresight Environmental InfrastructureAnnouncement

10/12/2024 07:00

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RNS Number : 4195P  Foresight Environmental Infrastruct  10 December 2024

 

 

FORESIGHT ENVIRONMENTAL INFRASTRUCTURE LIMITED

("FGEN" or the "Company")

 

Disposal of rooftop solar portfolio

 

FGEN, a leading listed investment company with a diversified portfolio of
environmental infrastructure assets across the UK and mainland Europe, is
pleased to announce that it has completed the sale of 100% of its portfolio of
operational rooftop solar assets (the "Rooftop Portfolio") to AtmosClear
Investments for a total consideration of £21.2 million (the "Disposal"). A
total of £20.5 million is payable upon completion ("Initial Proceeds"), with
a further £0.7 million in deferred consideration linked to the satisfaction
of certain post-completion obligations ("Deferred Consideration"). The Initial
Proceeds represent a modest premium to the valuation as at 30 September 2024
with the potential for further upside from the Deferred Consideration.

 

The Rooftop Portfolio comprises a portfolio of over 1,000 fully operational
domestic rooftop, commercial rooftop and ground-mounted solar installations
distributed across England, Scotland and Wales, and was acquired by FGEN in
2015. It is FGEN's only solar rooftop investment and considered to be non-core
to the wider FGEN portfolio.

 

The Disposal refines the portfolio, recognises a premium to NAV, and recycles
capital from a lower returning part of the portfolio into a further reduction
of debt in line with the Company's Capital Allocation policy.

 

The disposal crystallises an IRR of 4.2% and a multiple on invested capital
(MOIC) of 1.3x. It is the Company's second divestment this year after the sale
of interests in a portfolio of anaerobic digestion assets in August 2024
(10.9% IRR, 1.7x MOIC).

 

Following the Disposal, FGEN's solar exposure will consist of 11
ground-mounted solar parks across 5 investments in England and Wales which
make up approximately 13% of the FGEN portfolio by value.

 

Ed Warner, Chair of FGEN, said:

 

"We are pleased with this sales agreement which has provided us with
substantial funds from a non-core, low yielding asset. Capital allocation
remains a key priority for the Board and proceeds will be used to strengthen
our balance sheet through a further reduction in debt."

 

For further information and enquiries, please contact:

 

 Foresight Group                                      +44(0)20 3667 8100
 Chris Tanner                                         institutionalir@foresightgroup.eu (mailto:institutionalir@foresightgroup.eu)

Edward Mountney

Charlie Wright     Wilna de Villiers
 Winterflood Securities Limited                       +44(0)20 3100 0000
 Neil Langford

 SEC Newgate                                          +44 (0)20 3757 6882
 Elisabeth Cowell                                     fgen@secnewgate.co.uk (mailto:fgen@secnewgate.co.uk)

Alice Cho

Harry Handyside
 Apex Fund and Corporate Services (Guernsey) Limited  +44 (0)20 3530 3600
 Matt Lihou                                           fgen@apexgroup.com (mailto:fgen@apexgroup.com)

Matt Falla

 

About FGEN

FGEN's investment policy is to invest in a diversified portfolio of
Environmental Infrastructure. Environmental Infrastructure is defined by the
Company as infrastructure assets, projects and asset-backed businesses that
utilise natural or waste resources or support more environmentally friendly
approaches to economic activity, support the transition to a low carbon
economy or which mitigate the effects of climate change. Such investments will
typically feature one or more of the following characteristics:

 

· long-term, predictable cash flows, which may be wholly or partially
inflation-linked cash flows;

· long-term contracts or stable and well-proven regulatory and legal
frameworks; or

· well-established technologies, and demonstrable operational performance.

 

FGEN's aim is to provide investors with a sustainable, progressive dividend
per share, paid quarterly and to preserve the capital value of the portfolio
over the long term on a real basis. The target dividend for the year to 31
March 2025 is 7.80 pence per share¹.

 

FGEN is an Article 9 fund under the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure
Regulation and has a transparent and award winning approach to ESG.

 

Further details can be found on FGEN's website www.fgen.com
(http://www.fgen.com) and LinkedIn
(https://www.linkedin.com/showcase/foresight-environmental-infrastructure-limited)
page.

 

LEI: 213800JWJN54TFBMBI68

 

(1) These are targets only and not profit forecasts.  There can be no
assurance that these targets will be met or that the Company will make any
distributions at all.

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