UK-based solar energy investment company, Foresight Solar Fund Limited, has completed the acquisition of 11 operational solar assets in the U.K. The cumulative rating of the assets is said to reach 80.9 MW and cost €37.5 million, including the economic benefit of cashflows since 1 April.
The acquisition of projects ranging in scale from 4.9 MW to 14.2 MW, will be funded by the proceeds of an equity issue worth €65.8 million, raised through a placing of new ordinary shares in Foresight Solar. According to the investment company, the remaining proceeds will be used to reduce the group’s gearing by paying down debt.
Foresight said the 11 solar farms acquired operate under the renewable obligation scheme and receive 1.3-1.4 renewable obligation certificates (ROCs) per MWh. With the new assets, the company’s portfolio has grown to 869 MW across 54 installations.
“We are pleased to complete this acquisition, rounding off what has been a busy year both for Foresight Solar and for the U.K. renewables market as a whole,” said Foresight Solar Chairman Alex Ohlsson. “This acquisition further strengthens our position as the largest U.K.-listed dedicated solar energy investment company by installed capacity, and enhances the diversification of our asset portfolio and ability to drive economies of scale. Whilst we do not expect our high volume of activity in the U.K. secondary market to continue at the same [rate] in 2019, as previously noted, we are pleased to complete another NAV [net asset value] -accretive acquisition that demonstrates our ability to secure attractive opportunities.”
The 11 new assets in the portfolio include projects with 1.4 ROCs/MWh at Bulls Head, Milton Keynes (5.3 MW); Bilsthorpe, in Nottinghamshire (5.7 MW); Roskrow, in Cornwall (8.9 MW); Nowhere, in Lincolnshire (8.1 MW); Ash Farm, in Shropshire (8.4 MW); and Pen & Cae, Carmarthenshire, in Wales (6.8 MW). The 1.3 ROC schemes are PS Manor Farm, in Bedfordshire (14.2 MW); Playters, in Suffolk (8.6 MW); Lindridge, in Leicestershire (4.9 MW); Abbey Fields, in Kent (4.9 MW); and Mission, in South Yorkshire (5 MW).
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