JLEN.L Regulatory News (JLEN)

19 July 2019

John Laing Environmental Assets Group Limited

("JLEN" or the "Company")

Acquisition of two operational low head hydropower stations and a battery storage system

JLEN, the listed environmental infrastructure fund, is pleased to announce the acquisition of Yorkshire Hydropower Holdings Limited ("YHHL") for a total consideration, including working capital, of £4.3 million. YHHL owns 100% of the equity in Yorkshire Hydropower Limited ("YHL"), which in turn holds the rights to two operational hydro projects and an operational battery storage system.

This represents the Company's first investment in two new sectors - run-of-river hydro and battery storage, further diversifying the Company's portfolio of environmental infrastructure projects including, wind, solar, anaerobic digestion, waste and wastewater.

YHHL has been acquired from a group of high-net-worth investors, which provided the original funding under the Enterprise Investment Scheme.

The Yorkshire-based projects acquired, are:

·; Kirkthorpe hydro, a 500kW single turbine hydro project located on the River Calder, which was commissioned on 21 November 2016

·; Thrybergh hydro, a twin screw 260kW hydro project located on the River Don, commissioned 26 October 2015; and

·; a 1.2MW battery co-located at Thrybergh, commissioned in January 2018.

Both hydro projects are accredited under the 20-year Feed-in-Tariff scheme. The battery storage project at Thrybergh is currently dedicated to a Firm Frequency Response contract.

This acquisition increases the total capacity of renewable energy assets in the JLEN investment portfolio to 281.16MW.

The acquisition was funded by the group's internal cash resources.

Richard Morse, Chairman of JLEN, said:

"We are pleased to make our first investment into two new asset classes in run-of-river hydro and battery storage. These projects have a proven operational history, benefit from strong contractual revenues and broaden the diversification within the JLEN portfolio. Furthermore, they demonstrate the synergistic benefits of co-locating renewable energy generation and storage technology."

For further information, please contact: 

About JLEN

JLEN's investment policy is to invest in environmental infrastructure projects that have the benefit of long-term, predictable, wholly or partially inflation-linked cash flows supported by long-term contracts or stable regulatory frameworks.

Environmental Infrastructure is defined by the Company as infrastructure projects that utilise natural or waste resources or support more environmentally-friendly approaches to economic activity. This could involve the generation of renewable energy (including solar, wind, hydropower and biomass technologies), the supply and treatment of water, the treatment and processing of waste, and projects that promote energy efficiency.

JLEN's aim is to provide investors with an annual dividend that is sustainable and increases in line with inflation. The target dividend for the year to 31 March 2020 is 6.66 pence per share. The dividend is payable quarterly.

Further details of the Company can be found on its website www.jlen.com

LEI: 213800JWJN54TFBMBI68