Adiant Capital Partners, a Swiss investment advisory firm specialising in renewable infrastructure, has completed a 7.0 MWdc UK solar park and completed its sale to The Renewable Infrastructure Group.
The Parsonage Farm solar park is located near Ilminster, Somerset. The project was initially acquired by Adiant Capital Partners (“Adiant”) as construction-ready project from an independent solar developer and constructed over a 6-week period. The project has an installed capacity of 7.0 MWdc plus an optional 3.0 MWdc extension. The Parsonage Farm solar park has reached Commercial Operation Date on 31 July 2013, qualifying under the UK’s support banding of 1.6 Renewables Obligation Certificates (“ROCs”) per MWh and has a 3-year off-take agreement with GDF Suez Energy UK. The solar park has exceeded its expected output over the first months of operation.
The Renewables Infrastructure Group Limited (“TRIG”) has acquired 100% interests in the Parsonage Farm solar project from Adiant’s construction fund. The investment manager of TRIG is InfraRed Capital Partners Limited (“InfraRed”), an independent investment business, managing a range of infrastructure and real estate funds and investments. InfraRed has a strong record of delivering attractive returns for its investors, with total equity under management of more than USD 6bn.
The solar park is equipped with c. 30,000 Canadian Solar polycrystalline modules and SMA central inverters and has a 19 hectares footprint. It produces in excess of 7.2 GWh of electricity annually, enough to cover the power consumption of 2,200 UK households and avoid the emission of 7,200 tons of CO2 each year. The project will operate for the next 25 years.
Adiant selected Goldbeck Solar GmbH as both the lead Engineering, Procurement & Construction contractor and the Operation & Maintenance contractor. To date, Goldbeck Solar GmbH has installed more than 200 MWdc of solar photovolaic plants globally, including 50 MWdc in the UK. The grid connection was designed and installed by DNO Consulting. In structuring the transaction, Adiant has been advised by Jones Day.
Commenting on the firm’s future plans for the UK, Adiant’s co-founder and managing partner Pierre Caïjo expressed a positive outlook. “The Dillington project marks Adiant’s entry in the promising UK market. Our strategy for is to deliver, through both our development and construction equity funds, a portfolio of operating assets of at least 100 MWdc over the next 24 months. With an already secured portfolio in the UK representing 65 MWdc of construction-ready projects to be completed before 31 March 2014, we are confident we can deliver our plans”, Mr.. Caïjo said.
Richard Crawford, Director, Infrastructure of InfraRed Capital Partners Limited, TRIG’s Investment Manager, said “The team is delighted to announce these acquisitions which expand TRIG’s portfolio to six solar assets out of a total of 20 renewable energy infrastructure investments across the UK, France and Ireland. These additions further enhance the diversification of the TRIG portfolio, in line with TRIG’s investment objectives of providing investors with long-term, stable dividends and preserving capital value.”