LONDON, UK: Downing Renewables & Infrastructure Trust announced intention to raise new capital by conducting a placing of up to 24.499 million new ordinary shares of £0.01 each at a price of 102.50 pence per share to raise up to c.£25 million.
The placing will be conducted by way of a bookbuilding process.
The core sustainable investment objective of the Company is to accelerate the transition to net zero through its investments, compiling and operating a diversified portfolio of renewable energy and infrastructure assets to help facilitate the transition to a more sustainable future.
Downing Renewables & Infrastructure Trust believes that this directly contributes to climate change mitigation.
As stated in the Downing Renewables & Infrastructure Trust ‘s interim results, the Company has completed two investments since its IPO in December 2020, investing £102 million (83 per cent. of IPO proceeds), ahead of expectations at IPO:
· portfolio of eight operational hydropower plants in central and southern Sweden for €65 million (£60 million); and
· a 96MWp portfolio of UK Solar PV assets for £42 million.
For the period from IPO to 30 June 2021, the Company’s portfolio generation was 101,211 MWh, 6.6 per cent above expectations. Strong performance meant operating profit of investments was 14.4 per cent above expectations for the period to 30 June 2021.
The Investment Manager has identified a strong pipeline of assets which support the future growth of the Company in the hydropower, wind, solar, battery and utilities sectors.
In particular, the Investment Manager has secured exclusivity or is in bilateral negotiations in relation to four opportunities with a total investment amount of c.£87 million, including the Lake Vänern Wind Project in Sweden announced on 15 January 2021. Negotiations continue on the proposed acquisition of three hydropower plants and electricity distribution assets from AB Edsbyn Elverk announced on 27 May 2021.
The Investment Manager has also identified a wider pipeline of further assets in Sweden, Finland, Iceland, Poland and UK with a total investment amount in excess of £4.3 billion.
The Investment Manager intends to deploy the net proceeds of the Placing, in conjunction with the remaining proceeds of the IPO, into investment opportunities contained within the pipeline. In addition to this, the Investment Manager is also currently exploring options to optimise the existing capital structure of the Company’s portfolio, including the inception of a revolving credit facility.