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LONDON (Alliance News) - Greencoat Renewables PLC said Monday its net assets increased 50% in 2018 and, separately, will issue 100 million new shares under its issuance programme launched in July.
The programme will span across 12 months and will see up to 250 million shares placed in a number of tranches. The proceeds from this tranche will be used to refinance the company's revolving credit facility, allowing for further acquisitions.
The shares will be issued through a placing, at EUR1.055 each, to institutional investors. Shares in Greencoat Renewables were down 0.7% Monday at EUR1.08 each.
Davy and RBC Europe are acting as joint bookrunners and Commerzbank is acting as co-lead manager for the placing.
Separately, the Irish renewable infrastructure fund said it net assets increased 50% in 2018 to EUR392.8 million from EUR260.9 million in 2017.
The fund's NAV per share at December 31 was 7.0% higher at 103.4 euro cents compared to 96.6 cents the year before. The fund issued 110 million shares during the period.
Greencoat Renewables paid a 6.0 cents dividend in 2018, more than double the 2.61 cents distributed in 2017.
The investment managers, Bertrand Gautier and Paul O'Donnell, said they are "very pleased" with the milestones achieved in 2018, "significantly" transforming the company.
Gautier and O'Donnell said: "In the past 12 months, Greencoat Renewables has demonstrated the strength of all aspects of its business model through acquiring value accretive assets in the secondary market, ensuring the portfolio performed to target availability, raising further equity in an oversubscribed issuance, and increasing its available debt financing.
"The addition of 247 megawatts of high-quality generating capacity to our 137 megawatt seed portfolio has diversified and brought economies of scale to the business, continued to deliver strong cashflows, and demonstrated the resilience of the dividend cover, even in a low wind year with below average gearing."
Chair Ronan Murphy said: "The Irish wind market remains very attractive with a stable and supportive regulatory regime. Irish wind farms benefit from up to 15 years of inflation-linked floor prices under the REFIT regime, while allowing wind farms to capture prices above the floor. Wind remains the dominant renewable technology and the group is in an excellent position to benefit as wind becomes an increasing proportion of Ireland's generation mix."
