NextEnergy Solar Regulatory News (NESF)

LEI: 213800ZPHCBDDSQH5447

21 December 2021

NextEnergy Solar Fund Limited

("NESF" or the "Company")

Director Appointment

The Board of NESF is pleased to announce the appointment of Josephine Bush to the Board as a non-executive Director with effect from 1 January 2022.

Josephine Bush was a senior partner at Ernst & Young LLP for 14 years specialising in the renewable energy sector and amongst other things was responsible for developing the Ernst & Young LLP global renewables business plan. She was a member of the Ernst & Young LLP Power and Utilities Board and UK&I Governance Board.

She is a qualified solicitor and chartered tax adviser, and founded a not-for-profit, Sustainability & You, to raise awareness of climate change challenges and opportunities

Kevin Lyon, Chairman of NESF, commented:

"We are delighted to welcome Josephine to the Board. We believe her long standing commitment to the renewable energy sector will allow her to bring a wealth of knowledge and insight to the Board."

Pursuant to Listing Rule 9.6.13 the following disclosure is made:

Josephine Bush is a non-executive director, and Chair of the Audit, Risk and ESG committee, of Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd (ASX listed), a non-executive director of Net Zero Now Ltd and Foresight Sustainable Forestry Company PLC. She is also a member of the investment committee of Gresham House's British Sustainable Infrastructure Fund.

For further information:

Notes to Editors1:

About NextEnergy Solar Fund

NESF is a specialist solar power renewable energy investment company listed on the premium segment of the London Stock Exchange that invests in operating utility-scale solar power plants. The Company may invest up to 30% of its gross asset value in non-UK OECD countries, 15% in solar-focused private equity structures, and 10% in energy storage.

NESF currently has a diversified portfolio comprising 99 operating solar assets (primarily on agricultural, industrial, and commercial sites), and a $50m commitment into NextPower III (a private ESG solar infrastructure fund providing exposure to operating and in-development international solar assets).

The NESF portfolio has a combined installed power capacity of 895MW (including NextPower III MW on an equivalent look-through basis).

As at 30 September 2021, the Company had a gross asset value of £1,087 million, being the aggregate of the net asset value of the ordinary shares, the fair value of the preference shares and the amount of NESF Group debt outstanding, and a net asset value of £607million.

NESF's investment objective is to provide ordinary shareholders with attractive risk-adjusted returns, principally in the form of regular dividends, by investing in a diversified portfolio of primarily UK-based solar energy infrastructure assets. The majority of long-term cash flows from its investments are inflation-linked.

For further information on NESF please visit nextenergysolarfund.com

Commitment to ESG

NESF is committed to ESG principles and responsible investment which make a meaningful contribution to reducing CO2 emissions through the generation of clean solar power. NESF will only select investments that meet the requirements of NEC Group's Sustainable Investment Policy. Based on this policy, NESF benefits from NEC's rigorous ESG due diligence on each investment. NESF is committed to reporting on its ESG performance in accordance with the UN Sustainable Development Goals framework and the EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation.

NESF has been awarded the London Stock Exchange's Green Economy Mark and has been designated a Guernsey Green Fund by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission.

NESF's sustainability-related disclosures in the financial services sector in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2019/2088 can be accessed on the ESG section of both the NESF website (nextenergysolarfund.com/esg/) & NEC Group website (nextenergycapital.com/sustainability/transparency-and-reporting/).

About NextEnergy Capital Group ("NEC Group")

NESF is managed by the NextEnergy Capital Group, a specialist solar investment manager, which has a strong track record in sourcing, acquiring, and managing operating solar assets. NEC Group is a leading player in the global solar investment sector and has over 200 team members with offices in UK, Italy, India, and the USA and assets under management of over $3.2bn across three institutional funds.

NextEnergy Capital Group donates at least 5% of its net annual profits to NextEnergy Foundation. NextEnergy Foundation is an international charity that was founded in 2016. Its mission is to participate proactively in the global effort to reduce carbon emissions, provide clean power sources in regions where they are not yet available, and contribute to poverty alleviation.

For further information on NEC Group please visit nextenergycapital.com

For further information on NextEnergy Foundation visit nextenergyfoundation.org

About WiseEnergy

WiseEnergy is NEC Group's specialist operating asset management division. NESF is differentiated by its access to WiseEnergy, which has provided operating asset management, monitoring, technical due diligence, and other services to over 1,300 utility-scale solar power plants with an installed capacity in excess of 2.2GW.

For further information on Wise Energy please visit wise-energy.com  

[1] Note: All financial data is unaudited as at 30 September 2021, being the latest date in respect of which NESF has published financial information