Future looks bright for NextEnergy Solar Fund
NextEnergy Solar Fund, the FTSE 250 investment company, announced another robust set of results this morning, as the company’s assets produced 5 per cent more energy than expected.
Read more: Sun shines on NextEnergy as it plans global expansion
The figures
The London-listed company, which operates 89 solar assets across the UK and Italy with a capacity of 705 megawatts, powered 134,000 UK homes over the half year.
In all, the firm generated 515 gigawatts per hour of electricity in the period, preventing 131,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide emissions.
Total return for shareholders was 6.7 per cent, nearly double the figure for the same period last year.
NextEnergy also managed to reduce its net debt to £214m.
Why it’s interesting
NextEnergy chief executive Michael Bonte-Friedheim said that the results demonstrated why the company was such an attractive prospect for UK infrastructure investors.
Speaking to City PM, he said: “We continue to outperform our listed peers in the sector over the past five years.”
He added that the firm, which is leading investment in subsidy-free UK solar plants, had consistently produced more electricity than expected since 2014.
Read more: NextEnergy Solar Fund raises £856m from London float
The combination of a strong economic imperative to switch to solar as the cheapest form of electricity generation and the increasing demand for renewable sources meant that the company was well positioned for the future.
What NextEnergy said
Kevin Lyon, the company chairman, said:
“NextEnergy Solar Fund’s robust first half results were characterised by another period of out performance, resulting not only from high levels of solar irradiation but also from technical, financial and operational improvements across the portfolio.
“We are particularly proud of our maiden subsidy-free plant, Hall Farm II of 5.4 megawatts, which was energised during the period and is the UK’s first subsidy-free solar plant owned by a listed investment company. Its successful development and commissioning gives us industry leadership in this space, and work is underway on our next subsidy-free plant – a 50 megawatts plant currently under construction and due for commissioning by the end of the financial year.”
Main image credit: Nextenergy Solar Fund