Bluefield Solar completes acquisition of 64.2 MWp solar PV portfolio

Bluefield Solar has acquired a UK-based portfolio of 15 operational solar photovoltaic plants with a total installed capacity of 64.2 MWp. The Company has also agreed on a new GBP110.0 million (US$143.78 million), three-year term loan facility with National Westminster Bank plc (NatWest). Unless otherwise noted herein, the information provided in this announcement and any asset valuations underlying such information is unaudited.

Deloitte served as the seller's legal advisor on the transaction.

On 20 August 2020, Bluefield Solar completed the acquisition of the portfolio for an initial cash consideration of GBP106.6 million (US$139.33 million) including working capital. The final consideration may be increased by up to GBP2.1 million(US$2.74 million), contingent on securing asset life extensions. The Company will receive the economic benefit of all cash flows from the portfolio from 1 January 2020.

The portfolio consists of 15 ground-mounted operational solar PV plants, with 8 sites clustered in the southwest of England, 2 in west Wales, and a further 5 across central and eastern England. The portfolio benefits from attractive subsidies; 13 of the projects are accredited under the Renewable Obligation Certificate (ROC) regime with tariffs ranging from 1.4 - 2.0 ROCs, while two of the projects are accredited under the feed-in-tariff ('FiT') scheme. Including the FiT projects, the weighted average tariff for the portfolio is equivalent to circa 1.8 ROCs/MWh. In the period 2021-2033 (2033 being the year in which the subsidies on the earliest plants begin to expire), the proportion of regulated revenues from this portfolio is projected to be approximately 66% (compared to 57% for the Company's existing portfolio).