REG - US Solar Fund PLC US Solar Fund - USFP - Interim Results to 30 June 2025

Us Solar FundAnnouncement

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RNS Number : 4151Z  US Solar Fund PLC  16 September 2025

16 September 2025

 

US SOLAR FUND PLC

('USF', the 'Company')

 

INTERIM RESULTS TO 30 JUNE 2025

 

US Solar Fund plc (LON: USF (USD)/USFP (GBP)), the renewable energy fund
invested in utility-scale solar power plants in the US, is pleased to announce
its interim results for the six months ended 30 June 2025.

 

FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS AND CAPITAL MANAGEMENT

 ·         Net Asset Value (NAV) of $200.5m (31 December 2024: $194.2m) and NAV per share
           of $0.65 (31 December 2024: $0.63 per share), up 3.2%
 ·         Several factors contributed to this movement in NAV which include changes in
           certain tax and macroeconomic assumptions and discount rates (which had a
           positive impact) and changes in merchant curves (which had a negative impact)
 ·         During the period, the Company secured new senior debt facilities totalling
           approximately $166m, optimising the Company's capital structure, improving
           near-term distributable cash flow, and providing structural flexibility
 ·         In light of the consequential forecast improvements to total cash dividend
           coverage resulting from the refinancing, the Board announced an increase to
           the target dividend from $0.0225 per share to $0.035 per share, which will
           take effect in Q3 2025
 ·         Dividend of 0.56 cents declared for Q2 2025 to be paid by 28 October 2025, in
           line with the Company's previous dividend target of $0.0225 per share
 ·         Operational dividend cash cover of 1.05x (December 2024: 1.10x)

Gill Nott, Chair of US Solar Fund, said:

"Having completed the refinancing of the portfolio, our revised dividend, with
a current yield of over 8% 1  (#_ftn1) , will deliver increased returns to
shareholders.

 

Federal renewable energy and trade policy changes implemented during the
period have increased uncertainty for new-build projects at a time when energy
demand in the US is forecast to grow. Third party revenue consultants expect
these factors to drive higher power prices in the US, which will benefit
existing generation assets. While it will take time for market conditions to
fully respond to the new energy and trade environment, these policy changes
may provide new opportunities for the Company to monetise assets or otherwise
create liquidity for shareholders.

 

The Board's and Investment Manager's dual priorities remain remediating issues
impacting operational performance, and identifying market opportunities that
will lead to realising value for the Company's assets."

 

OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS

 Total generation was 350GWh (1H 2024: 365GWh), 10.2% below budget, driven by:
 ·         A positive variance of 0.6% attributable to above forecast solar irradiance;
 ·         A negative variance of 10.8% attributable to unscheduled outages and other
           non-irradiance related factors:
           o                                        2.8% attributable to utility grid outages and outages caused by theft-related
                                                    damage
           o                                        7.7% due to unplanned outages caused by previously identified technical issues
                                                    at 7 of the Company's assets, frequent, low impact events across the
                                                    portfolio, and discretionary outages to prevent more extensive damage or
                                                    maintenance outages. The focus of asset management efforts during the period
                                                    has been developing and implementing priority site-specific capital investment
                                                    initiatives which are expected to be accretive to the portfolio. This will
                                                    continue through the second half of 2025. Activities to reduce the occurrence

                                                    and duration of generally correctable, low-impact unplanned outages, are
                                                    ongoing
           o                                        A further 0.3% of the variance was attributable to soiling and uncharacterised
                                                    losses
 ·         Portfolio weighted average power purchase agreements (PPA) term of 10.4 years
           (31 Dec 2024: 10.9 years). All PPA counterparties are investment-grade with
           average credit rating of BBB+
 ·         The Board and Investment Manager remain confident in a positive performance
           outlook as the asset remediation plan, together with improved ongoing
           maintenance, continues to be implemented

 

GOVERNANCE

 ·         Shareholders voted against discontinuation at the 2025 Annual General Meeting,
           confirming continuation of the Company

CHANGES TO US ENERGY POLICY AND OUTLOOK

 ·             Changes implemented by the Trump Administration aimed at reshaping energy
               policy have led to widespread uncertainty in the US renewable market and in
               the near-term will be likely to continue to impact market confidence and
               constrain near-term US renewable energy development below levels previously
               anticipated
 ·             In the context of a US market expecting material load growth over the same
               time frame, these factors are expected to put upward pressure on US power
               prices
 ·             The Board believes that the outlook for growth in renewable energy in the US
               remains strong because of supportive state-level mandates and energy policies,
               sustained demand growth and the overall cost advantage of renewable energy

 

Interim report

In accordance with UK Listing Rule 6.4.1, copies of the Company's interim
report have been submitted to the UK Listing Authority and will shortly be
available to view on the Company's corporate website
at http://www.ussolarfund.co.uk (http://www.ussolarfund.co.uk/)  and for
inspection from the National Storage Mechanism
at: https://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism
(https://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism)

 

For further information, please contact:

 

 US Solar Fund                      +44 20 7939 0550

 Meredith Frost (Amber)

 Cavendish Capital Markets Limited  +44 20 7397 8900

 Tunga Chigovanyika

 JTC (UK) Limited

 Ruth Wright                        USSolarFund-CompanySecretary@jtcgroup.com

                                    +44 207 409 0181
 KL Communications                  USF@kl-communications.com

 Charles Gorman                     +44 20 3882 6644

 Charlotte Francis

 Amy Levingston Smith

 

About US Solar Fund plc

US Solar Fund plc, established in 2019, listed on the premium segment of the
London Stock Exchange in April 2019. The Company's investment objective is to
provide investors with attractive and sustainable dividends with an element of
capital growth by owning and operating solar power assets in the US.

 

The solar power assets that the Company acquires or constructs are expected to
have an asset life of at least 30 years and generate stable and uncorrelated
cashflows by selling electricity to creditworthy offtakers under long-term
power purchase agreements (or PPAs). The Company's portfolio currently
consists of 41 operational solar projects with a total capacity of 443MWDC,
all located in the United States.

 

Further information on the Company can be found on its website
at www.ussolarfund.co.uk (http://www.ussolarfund.co.uk/) .

 

About Amber Infrastructure Group

Amber Infrastructure Investment Advisor LLC, a subsidiary of the Amber
Infrastructure Group, was appointed as the Company's Investment Manager on 1
December 2023.

 

Amber Infrastructure Group (Amber) is an international infrastructure
specialist, focused on investment origination, development, asset management
and in Europe, fund management. Amber's core business focuses on
infrastructure assets across the public, transport, energy, digital and
demographic infrastructure sectors that support the lives of people, homes and
businesses internationally.

 

Among other funds, Amber advises International Public Partnerships, a FTSE
250-listed Company with a market cap of £2.2billion and 15-year track record
of long-term investment in infrastructure assets globally. Amber is
headquartered in London with offices in Europe, North America and Australia
and employs c.180 infrastructure professionals. Amber has had a strategic
partnership with Hunt Companies, Inc. in the US since 2015 and completed their
previously announced strategic combination with Boyd Watterson in August 2024.

 

Learn more at www.amberinfrastructure.com
(http://www.amberinfrastructure.com/) .

 

 1  (#_ftnref1) USF dividends expected to be paid over the next 12 months from
12 September, divided by the USF share price as at close of trading (12
September)

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