Monday 08 April 2019 5:09 pm | Updated: Monday 03 June 2019 1:45 am

Solarcentury closes in on potential sale worth up to £250m

Solarcentury, one of the world’s biggest solar power firms, has appointed investment bank Evercore to oversee a potential sale worth as much as £250m.

A source close to the firm confirmed this afternoon it was looking at potential buyers this week, with a view to a transaction later in 2019.

The firm, which was founded 20 years ago, has cashed in on a steep fall in production costs for solar photovoltaic power, plus improvements in the manufacturing process.

It has projected earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation for the coming 12 months of around £30m, up on the expected £12m in the financial year just completed.

In a statement, Solarcentury did not directly address the potential sale, first reported by Sky News, but said: “Like all high growth, global businesses such as ours, we regularly review our strategic options and financing arrangements.

“As a business, we are focused on delivering long-term growth and profitability through the conversion of our global pipeline of 5GW of development assets, in our continued mission to make a meaningful difference in the fight against climate change and make solar power mainstream.

“Over the past 20 years, Solarcentury has evolved to become a truly global player in the international solar industry, benefiting from a robust financial position, with positive trading momentum, zero debt and a strong cash balance to support our increasing development activity worldwide.”

Solarcentury’s projects are now producing enough units of electricity to power the equivalent of 410,000 households each year – around an eighth of London’s households.