Prospectus • Sep 17, 2020
Prospectus
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THIS DOCUMENT IS IMPORTANT AND REQUIRES YOUR IMMEDIATE ATTENTION. If you are in any doubt about the contents of this Prospectus you should consult your accountant, legal or professional adviser, financial adviser or a person authorised for the purposes of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended, ("FSMA") who specialises in advising on the acquisition of shares and other securities.
This document comprises a prospectus relating to Aquila European Renewables Income Fund PLC (the "Company") in connection with the issue of New Ordinary Shares and Ordinary Shares prepared in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2017 on the prospectus to be published when securities are offered to the public or admitted to trading on a regulated market (the "Prospectus Regulation") and the Prospectus Regulation Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority (the "FCA") made pursuant to section 73A of FSMA (the "Prospectus"), has been delivered and approved by the FCA in accordance with Article 20 of the Prospectus Regulation and has been made available to the public in accordance with Article 21 of the Prospectus Regulation and Rule 3.2 of the Prospectus Regulation Rules.
This document has been approved by the FCA of 12 Endeavour Square, London, E20 1JN (telephone: 0800 111 6768 (freephone) or 0300 500 8082 from the UK or +44 207 066 1000 from outside the UK) as the competent authority under the Prospectus Regulation. The FCA only approves this document as meeting the standards of completeness, comprehensibility and consistency imposed by the Prospectus Regulation. Such approval shall not be considered as an endorsement of the Company or the quality of the securities that are the subject of this document. Investors should make their own assessment as to the suitability of investing in the securities.
It is expected that an application will be made to the FCA for all of the New Ordinary Shares to be issued in connection with the Issue to be admitted to the premium segment of the Official List and to the London Stock Exchange for all such New Ordinary Shares to be admitted to trading on the Main Market. It is expected that such admissions will become effective, and that dealings in the New Ordinary Shares will commence, on 13 October 2020. The Ordinary Shares are not dealt in on any other recognised investment exchanges and no applications for the New Ordinary Shares to be traded on such other exchanges have been made or are currently expected.
The Company and each of the Directors, whose names appear on page 35 of this Prospectus, accept responsibility for the information contained in this Prospectus. To the best of the knowledge of the Company and the Directors, the information contained in this Prospectus is in accordance with the facts and this Prospectus makes no omission likely to affect its import.
Prospective investors should read this entire Prospectus and, in particular, the matters set out under the heading "Risk Factors" on pages 11 to 27, when considering an investment in the Company.
(incorporated in England and Wales with company number 11932433 and registered as an investment company under section 833 of the Companies Act 2006)
and
Placing Programme of up to 500 million Ordinary Shares
Investment Adviser
Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH
| Sponsor and Joint Bookrunner | Joint Bookrunner |
|---|---|
| Numis Securities Limited | Kempen & Co |
Numis Securities Limited ("Numis"), which is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the
FCA, is acting exclusively for the Company and no-one else in connection with the Issue or the Placing Programme or in relation to the matters referred to in this Prospectus and will not regard any other person (whether or not a recipient of this document) as its client in relation to the Issue or the Placing Programme and will not be responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for providing advice in relation to the Issue or the Placing Programme, the contents of this document or any transaction or arrangement referred to in this Prospectus.
Kempen & Co, which is authorised and regulated in the Netherlands by the Dutch Authority for Financial Markets and the Dutch Central Bank, is acting exclusively for the Company and no-one else in connection with the Placing and the Placing Programme or in relation to the matters referred to in this Prospectus, will not regard any other person (whether or not a recipient of this document) as its client in relation to the Placing or the Placing Programme and will not be responsible to anyone other than the Company for providing the protections afforded to its clients or for providing advice in relation to the Placing or the Placing Programme, the contents of this document or any transaction or arrangement referred to in this Prospectus. Kempen & Co is not acting for or providing services to the Company or any other person in respect of the Offer for Subscription and will not be responsible to any person in respect of any claim or any other matter arising from the Offer for Subscription.
Apart from the responsibilities and liabilities, if any, which may be imposed on Numis by FSMA or the regulatory regime established thereunder, neither Numis nor Kempen & Co accept any responsibility whatsoever for, or make any warranty or representation, express or implied, in respect of, the contents of this Prospectus, including its accuracy, completeness or verification or concerning any other statement made or purported to be made by it, or on its behalf, in connection with the Company, the AIFM, the Investment Adviser, New Ordinary Shares or the Ordinary Shares and nothing in this document is or shall be relied upon as a promise or representation in this respect. Each of Numis and Kempen & Co accordingly disclaims to the fullest extent permitted by law all or any responsibility or liability whether arising in tort or contract or otherwise (save as referred to above) which it might have in respect of this Prospectus or any such statement.
The New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares are only suitable for investors: (i) who understand and are willing to assume the potential risk of capital loss and that there may be limited liquidity in the underlying investments of the Company; (ii) for whom an investment in such shares is part of a diversified investment programme; and (iii) who fully understand and are willing to assume the risks involved in such an investment programme. It should be remembered that the price of the New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares and the income from them can go down as well as up.
The New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or under the securities laws of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States. The New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares may not be offered or sold, directly or indirectly, in, into or within the United States, or to, or for the account or benefit of, a "U.S. person" (as defined in Regulation S under the Securities Act ("Regulation S")) ("U.S. Person"). The New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares are being offered and sold only outside the United States to non-U.S. Persons in "offshore transactions" within the meaning of, and in reliance on, Regulation S.
Prospective investors should consider carefully (to the extent relevant to them) the notices to residents of various countries set out on pages 131 to 134 of this Prospectus.
This Prospectus is dated 17 September 2020.
| SUMMARY 4 | |
|---|---|
| RISK FACTORS11 | |
| IMPORTANT INFORMATION 28 | |
| EXPECTED TIMETABLE 33 | |
| DIRECTORS, AGENTS AND ADVISERS 35 | |
| PART I: COMMERCIAL SUMMARY 37 | |
| PART II: RENEWABLE ENERGY 39 | |
| PART III: THE EXISTING PORTFOLIO AND ENHANCED PIPELINE 49 | |
| PART IV: THE COMPANY 56 | |
| PART V: DIRECTORS, MANAGEMENT AND ADMINISTRATION 70 | |
| PART VI: FEES AND EXPENSES 82 | |
| PART VII: THE ISSUE 84 | |
| PART VIII: THE PLACING PROGRAMME 88 | |
| PART IX: TAXATION 93 | |
| PART X: ADDITIONAL INFORMATION 96 | |
| PART XI: FINANCIAL INFORMATION ON THE COMPANY 109 | |
| PART XII: DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE 110 | |
| PART XIII: TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE PLACING AND PLACING PROGRAMME111 | |
| PART XIV: TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF THE OFFER FOR SUBSCRIPTION 122 | |
| NOTICES TO OVERSEAS INVESTORS 131 | |
| DEFINITIONS 135 | |
| NOTES ON HOW TO COMPLETE THE APPLICATION FORM FOR THE OFFER FOR SUBSCRIPTION 143 |
|
| APPLICATION FORM FOR THE OFFER FOR SUBSCRIPTION 146 |
This summary should be read as an introduction to the Prospectus. Any decision to invest in the securities should be based on consideration of the Prospectus as a whole. An investor could lose all or part of their invested capital. Where a claim relating to the information contained in the Prospectus is brought before a court, the plaintiff investor might, under the national legislation of any sovereign state which is a member of the European Union, have to bear the costs of translating the Prospectus before the legal proceedings are initiated. Civil liability attaches only to those persons who have tabled the summary including any translation thereof, but only if the summary is misleading, inaccurate or inconsistent when read together with the other parts of the Prospectus or it does not provide, when read together with the other parts of the Prospectus, key information in order to aid investors when considering whether to invest in such securities.
The securities which the Company intends to issue are ordinary shares with a nominal value of 1 cent each ("Ordinary Shares") whose ISIN is GB00BK6RLF66. The Company's LEI is 213800UKH1TZIC9ZRP41.
Aquila European Renewables Income Fund plc (the "Company"), can be contacted by writing to its registered office, 1st Floor, Senator House, 85 Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4V 4AB or by calling, within business hours, +44 204 513 9260.
This document was approved on 17 September 2020 by the Financial Conduct Authority ("FCA") of 12 Endeavour Square, London, E20 1JN (telephone: 0800 111 6768 (freephone) or 0300 500 8082 from the UK or +44 207 066 1000 from outside the UK). Further contact information relating to the FCA can be found at https://www.fca.org.uk/contact.
The Company was incorporated and registered in England and Wales on 8 April 2019 with registered number 11932433 as a public company limited by shares under the Companies Act 2006 as amended (the "Companies Act"). Its registered office is situated at 1st Floor, Senator House, 85 Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4V 4AB. The LEI is 213800UKH1TZIC9ZRP41.
The Company is registered as an investment trust for the purposes of section 1158 of the Corporation Tax Act 2010, as amended. The Company invests in renewable energy infrastructure investments in continental Europe and the Republic of Ireland comprising (i) wind, photovoltaic and hydropower plants that generate electricity through the transformation of the energy of the wind, the sunlight and running water as naturally replenished resources, and (ii) non-generation renewable energy related infrastructure associated with the storage (such as batteries) and transmission (such as distribution grids and transmission lines) of renewable energy, in each case either already operating or in construction/ development ("Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments"). The Company's investment objective is to seek to generate stable returns, principally in the form of income distributions, by investing in a diversified portfolio of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments.
The Company has a wholly owned subsidiary, Tesseract Holdings Limited, which in turn holds the Company's investment portfolio through a number of SPV's.
As at the close of business on 16 September 2020 (being the latest practicable date before publication of this Prospectus) (the "Latest Practicable Date"), the following parties were known to be the Company's major shareholders:
| Shareholder | Number of existing ordinary shares |
Percentage of existing issued ordinary share capital |
|---|---|---|
| BlackRock Inc | 32,189,996 | 16.61 |
| CCLA Investment Management Limited | 20,436,224 | 10.55 |
| Standard Life Aberdeen plc | 12,300,681 | 6.35 |
| Stichting Juridisch Eigendom Privium Sustainable Impact Fund |
9,809,523 | 5.06 |
| City Asset Management Plc | 7,932,980 | 4.09 |
The Company's board of directors ("Board") is comprised of the following non-executive directors: Ian Nolan (Chairman), David MacLellan, Patricia Rodrigues and Kenneth MacRitchie.
The Company's key service providers are: International Fund Management Limited (the "Alternative Investment Fund Manager"), Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH (the "Investment Adviser"), PraxisIFM Fund Services (UK) Limited (the administrator and company secretary to the Company) (the "Administrator"), Computershare Investor Services PLC (the registrar and receiving agent to the Company) (the "Registrar), Numis Securities Limited (the sponsor and joint bookrunner to the Company) ("Numis") and Van Lanschot Kempen Wealth Management N.V (the joint bookrunner to the Company in respect of the Placing and the Placing Programme) ("Kempen & Co"). The auditors of the Company for the financial year ended 31 December 2019 were Pricewaterhousecoopers LLP of 7 More London Riverside, London, SE1 2RT.
The selected historical financial information set out below, which has been prepared under IFRS, has been extracted without material adjustment from the audited financial statement of the Company for the financial period ended 31 December 2019 and from the unaudited financial statements for the six month period from 1 January 2020 to 30 June 2020:
Table 1: additional information relating to closed ended funds
| Share Class Total NAV * |
Number of Shares * |
NAV per share * |
Historical performance of the Company |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ordinary €190,770,000 Shares |
193,411,877 | 98.6 cents | Financial period ended 31 December 2019 During the period, the Company delivered a total NAV return of 5.6 per cent., measured as the movement in NAV plus dividends over the period. Dividends for the period totaled 1.5 cents per share. The value of the Company's investments as at 31 December 2019 was €118.7 million. As at 31 December 2019, the Company's NAV per share was 102.75 cents and its share price was 107.80 cents. |
| Financial period ended 30 June 2020 During the period, the Company delivered a total NAV return of (2.5) per cent., measured as the movement in NAV plus dividends over the period. Dividends for the period totaled 1.5 cents per share. The value of the Company's investments as at 30 June 2020 was €146.8 million. As at 30 June 2020, the Company's NAV per share was 98.63 cents and its share price was 100.50 cents. |
|||
| * as at 30 June 2020. Table 2: income statement for closed ended funds ** |
|||
| 31 December 2019 | 30 June 2020 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total net income/net investment income or total income before operating expenses |
€10,204,000 | €(4,058,000) |
| Net profit/(loss) | €8,541,000 | €(5,484,000) |
| Performance fee | Nil | Nil |
| Investment management fee | €(654,000) | €(716,000) |
| Any other material fees to service providers | Nil | Nil |
| Earnings per share | 7.07 cents | (3.80 cents) |
Table 3: balance sheet for closed ended funds **
| 31 December 2019 | 30 June 2020 | |
|---|---|---|
| Total net assets | €158,917,000 | €190,770,000 |
| Leverage ratio *** | 0.33 | 0.25 |
** The key figures set out in tables 2 and 3 above summarise the Company's financial condition in respect of the period covered by (i) the Annual Report for the period from 8 April 2019 to 31 December 2019 and (ii) the unaudited financial statements for the period from 1 January 2020 to 30 June 2020 and has been extracted without material adjustment from the Company's historical financial information.
*** Total liabilities divided by total net assets.
• Although certain assets have been identified by the Investment Adviser as being potentially available for acquisition by the Company (the ''Enhanced Pipeline''), there are no binding commitments or agreements to acquire any of these assets and the Company does not have a right of first refusal over any of the assets in the Enhanced Pipeline.
• The Company's investments will include power generation and transmission plants using relatively new technologies. In some cases there are few comparable systems worldwide that can be used to forecast the durability of the plants. There is therefore a risk that the power plants cannot be used over the forecast period or achieve the predicted capacity or efficiency. This could result in additional costs for renewal or replacement of the power plants or their components.
If all or any of these risk factors were to materialise the profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The securities which are being offered are Ordinary Shares (with a nominal value of 1 cent each) issued and designated as "New Ordinary Shares", whose ISIN is GB00BK6RLF66. The New Ordinary Shares will be offered pursuant to a placing and offer for subscription (the "Issue"). The Company is targeting a fundraising of approximately €150 million (before expenses) pursuant to the Issue (in the event of sufficient demand, the Directors may increase the size to €200 million). The Company also intends to put in place a placing programme with the flexibility to issue up to 500 million Ordinary Shares at an issue price calculated by reference to the NAV per Ordinary Share at the time of allotment together with a premium intended to cover at a minimum the costs and expenses of the relevant issuance of Ordinary Shares (including without limitation any placing commissions) (the "Placing Programme"). As at the Latest Practicable Date, the Company had 193,770,815 fully paid Ordinary Shares in issue. The Ordinary Shares are denominated in Euro. The Company has no partly paid Ordinary Shares in issue.
Subject to the articles of association of the Company (the "Articles") and for such time as the Ordinary Shares are the only class of share in issue, Shareholders are entitled to all dividends paid by the Company and, on a winding-up, once the Company has satisfied all of its liabilities, the Shareholders are entitled to all of the surplus assets of the Company. Shareholders will be entitled to attend and vote at all general meetings of the Company and, on a poll, to one vote for each Ordinary Share held.
There are no restrictions on the free transferability of the Ordinary Shares, subject to compliance with applicable securities law.
The Board may decline to register any transfer of any Ordinary Share in certificated form or (to the extent permitted by the Companies Act) uncertificated form which is not fully paid or on which the Company has a lien, or in a limited number of circumstances that would otherwise require the Company to be subject to or operate in accordance with certain U.S. laws or regulations (including the United States Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended from time to time, and the United States Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended from time to time), provided that this would not prevent dealings in the Ordinary Shares from taking place on an open and proper basis.
The registration of transfers may be suspended at such times and for such periods (not exceeding 30 days in the aggregate in any one calendar year) as the Directors may decide except that, in respect of any Ordinary Shares which are participating shares held in an uncertificated system (such as CREST), the register of members shall not be closed without the consent of the relevant authorised operator of that system.
The Ordinary Shares are the only instrument that the Company has in issue in its capital structure. The New Ordinary Shares and any Ordinary Shares issued under the Placing Programme will rank alongside the existing Ordinary Shares in the event of an insolvency. On an insolvency the Shareholders will be entitled to a share in the capital of the Company, in the same proportions as capital is attributable to them, only after the Company has settled all amounts owed to its creditors.
(e) Dividend Policy
Subject to having sufficient distributable reserves to do so, the Company is targeting a minimum of 4.0 cents per Ordinary Share in relation to the financial year ending 31 December 2020 and 5 cents per Ordinary Share in respect of subsequent financial years, with the aim of increasing this dividend progressively over the medium term.1
Distributions on the OrdinaryShares are expectedto be paid quarterly, normally in respect of the three months to 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and 31 December, and are expected to be made by way of interim dividends to be declared in May, August, November and February. In line with its dividend target for the year ending 31 December 2020, the Company expects to announce in early October 2020 a dividend of 1.25 cents in relation to the quarter ended 30 September 2020. It is expected that the record date for this third interim dividend will fall before Admission of any New Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to the Issue and therefore any such New Ordinary Shares will not be entitled to this third interim dividend in respect of the year ended 31 December 2020. Fractions of New Ordinary Shares will not be issued.
The Company will declare dividends in Euro and Shareholders will, by default, receive dividend payments in Euros. Shareholders may, on completion of a dividend election form, elect to receive dividend payments in Sterling (at their own exchange rate risk). The date on which the exchange rate between Euro and Sterling is set will be announced at the time the dividend is declared. A further announcement will be made once the exchange rate has been set. Dividend election forms will be available from the Registrar on request
Applications will be made to the FCA for the New Ordinary Shares to be admitted to the official list maintained by the FCA with a premium listing and to the London Stock Exchange for trading on the main market of the London Stock Exchange pursuant to the Issue ("Admission"). It is expected that Admission will become effective and that dealings for normal settlement in the Ordinary Shares will commence at 8:00 a.m. on 13 October 2020.
Applications will be made to the FCA for any Ordinary Shares issued under the Placing Programme to be admitted to the official list maintained by the FCA with a premium listing and to the London Stock Exchange for trading on the main market of the London Stock Exchange (a "Further Admission"). It is expected that any Further Admission will become effective and that dealings for normal settlement in the Ordinary Shares will commence between 13 October 2020 and 16 September 2021 (or any earlier date on which the Placing Programme is fully subscribed). All Ordinary Shares issued under the Placing Programme will be allotted conditionally upon the relevant Further Admission occurring.
There can be no guarantee that a liquid market in the Ordinary Shares will exist. Accordingly, Shareholders may be unable to realise their Ordinary Shares at the quoted market price (or at the prevailing net asset value per Ordinary Share), or at all. In addition, the Ordinary Shares may trade at a discount to net asset value and Shareholders may be unable to realise their investments through the secondary market at net asset value.
4.1 Under which conditions and timetable can I invest in this security?
(a) Conditions of the Issue and Placing Programme
The Company is targeting an issue of 144,578,313 New Ordinary Shares to be issued at a price of €1.0375 each pursuant to the Issue. The maximum number of New Ordinary Shares to be issued under the Issue is 192,771,084.
The Company, Numis, Kempen & Co and the Investment Adviser have entered into a placing
1 These are targets only and not forecasts. There can be no assurance that these targets can or will be met and they should not be seen as an indication of the Company's expected or actual results or returns. Accordingly, investors should not place any reliance on these targets in deciding whether to invest in Ordinary Shares or assume that the Company will make any distributions at all.
agreement dated 17 September 2020 ("Placing Agreement"), pursuant to which Numis and Kempen & Co have agreed, subject to certain conditions severally (and not jointly or jointly and severally), to use their reasonable endeavours to procure subscribers for the New Ordinary Shares made available in the placing (less the number of New Ordinary Shares required to satisfy valid applications accepted by the Company under the offer for subscription).
New Ordinary Shares are available to the public under the offer for subscription. The offer for subscription is only being made in the UK but, subject to applicable law, the Company may allot New Ordinary Shares on a private placement basis to applicants in other jurisdictions.
The Issue is conditional upon, inter alia:
The Placing Programme will open on 13 October 2020 and will close on 16 September 2021 (or any earlier date on which it is fully subscribed or as otherwise determined by the Directors). The minimum price at which Ordinary Shares will be issued pursuant to the Placing Programme, which will be in Euros, will be equal to the prevailing published net asset value per Ordinary Share at the time of issue together with a premium to at least cover the cost and expenses of the relevant placing (including without limitation, any placing commissions).
Each issue of Ordinary Shares pursuant to a placing under the Placing Programme is conditional, inter alia, on:
| Issue opens | 17 September 2020 |
|---|---|
| Latest date/time for receipt of completion offer for subscription application forms and payment in full under the offer for subscription |
11:00 a.m. on 8 October 2020 |
| Latest date/time for receipt of placing commitment under the placing |
12:00 p.m. on 8 October 2020 |
If the Issue is extended, the revised timetable will be notified via a regulatory information service announcement.
(c) Admission
It is expected that Admission will become effective and that dealings for normal settlement in the New Ordinary Shares will commence at 8:00 a.m. on 13 October 2020.
It is expected that any Further Admissions will become effective and that dealings for normal settlement in the Ordinary Shares will commence between 13 October 2020 and 16 September 2021 (or any earlier date on which the Placing Programme is fully subscribed). All Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to a subsequent placing under the Placing Programme will be allotted conditionally upon the relevant admission occurring.
The percentage holding of an existing shareholder will be diluted to the extent that they do not participate in the Issue. Where a shareholder does not participate in the placing or the offer for subscription but the Issue is fully subscribed, the dilution of the percentage holding for such an existing shareholder would be approximately 42.7 per cent..
The costs and expenses of the Issue, which will be paid by the Company, are estimated to be no more than 2 per cent. of the gross issue proceeds of the Issue amounting to approximately €3 million if the target gross issue proceeds of €150 million are raised. No fees or expenses in relation to the Issue will be charged to investors and the Company will bear these costs including any abort costs if the Issue does not proceed.
The costs and expenses of issuing Ordinary Shares pursuant to any placings under the Placing Programme shall be covered by issuing such Ordinary Shares at the prevailing published net asset value per Ordinary Shares at the time of issue together with a premium to at least cover the costs and expenses of the relevant placing of Ordinary Shares (including without limitation, any placing commissions). No fees or expenses in relation to the any placing under the Placing Programme will be charged to investors and the Company will bear these costs including any abort costs if any placing under the Placing Programme does not proceed.
The target size of the Issue is €150 million. Assuming that the target of approximately 145 million New Ordinary Shares to be issued pursuant to the Issue is achieved and that the costs of the Issue do not exceed 2 per cent. of the gross issue proceeds, it is expected that the Company will receive approximately €147 million in cash from the Issue, net of fees and expenses associated with the Issue. The Directors intend that the net issue proceeds will be used by the Company to acquire Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, in accordance with the Company's investment policy and to provide sufficient funds for the working capital of the Company. The Directors have confidence that the net issue proceeds can be deployed to acquire suitable assets within six to twelve months of Admission (subject to market conditions).
The net proceeds of the Placing Programme are dependent, inter alia, on the Directors determining to proceed with a placing under the Placing Programme, the level of subscriptions received, the price at which such Ordinary Shares are issued and the costs of the relevant placing. The Directors intend to use the net proceeds of any placing under the Placing Programme to acquire assets in accordance with the Company's investment policy and for working capital purposes.
(b) Underwriting
Neither the Issue nor the Placing Programme is being underwritten.
(c) Material conflicts of interest
There are no material conflicts of interest in relation to the Issue and the Placing Programme.
Investment in the Company carries a high degree of risk, including but not limited to the risks in relation to the Company and the Ordinary Shares referred to below. If any of the risks referred to in this Prospectus were to occur, the financial position and prospects of the Company could be materially and adversely affected. If that were to occur, the trading price of the Ordinary Shares and/or the net asset value per Ordinary Share and/or the level of dividends or distributions (if any) received from the Ordinary Shares could decline significantly and investors could lose all or part of their investment. Accordingly, potential investors should review carefully and evaluate the risks and the other information contained in this document before making a decision to invest in the Company. If in any doubt, potential investors should immediately seek their own personal financial advice from an independent professional adviser authorised under FSMA who specialises in advising on the acquisition of shares and other securities or other advisers such as legal advisers and accountants.
The risks referred to below are the risks which are considered to be material but are not the only risks relating to the Company and the Ordinary Shares. There may be additional material risks that the Company and the Board do not currently consider to be material as at the date of this Prospectus or of which the Company and the Board are not currently aware. Such risks may also have an adverse effect on the performance of the Company and the value of the Ordinary Shares. Potential investors should review this Prospectus carefully and in its entirety and consult with their professional advisers before acquiring any Ordinary Shares.
No investment opportunities from the Enhanced Pipeline have been contracted to be acquired by the Company, there are no binding commitments or agreements to acquire any of these investment opportunities and the Company does not have a right of first refusal over any of the investment opportunities in the Enhanced Pipeline. The Investment Adviser is under no obligation to make the investment opportunities in the Enhanced Pipeline available to the Company and will apply its Allocation Policy in respect of the allocation of investment opportunities among Aquila Managed Funds. Therefore, there can be no assurance that any of these investment opportunities will be available for purchase after Admission or, if available, at what price (if a price can be agreed at all) the investment opportunities can be acquired by the Company. Investments not comprised in the Enhanced Pipeline may also become available. The individual holdings within the Company's portfolio may therefore be substantially different to the Enhanced Pipeline.
The Company was formed on 8 April 2019 and has a relatively short operating history. As the Company has a relatively short operating history, investors have a limited basis on which to evaluate the Company's ability to achieve its investment objective and provide a satisfactory investment return. The Company's returns will depend on many factors, including the performance of its Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, the availability and liquidity of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments and the ability of the Company to successfully pursue its investment objective. The past performance of investments managed and monitored by the Investment Adviser or its associates is not a reliable indication of the future performance of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. As such, there can be no assurance that the Company's investment objective will be successful.
All target dividends and returns are based on a number of assumptions, including that the taxes payable by the Company remain materially unchanged, that the Company's ongoing running costs are as anticipated and that the Net Issue Proceeds will be invested within expected timeframes. There can be no guarantee that these assumptions or the Company's target dividends and returns will be met or that distributions will be made at all.
Market liquidity in the shares of investment companies is frequently lower than that of shares issued by larger companies traded on the London Stock Exchange. There can be no guarantee that a liquid market in the Ordinary Shares will continue to exist. Accordingly, Shareholders may be unable to realise their Ordinary Shares at the quoted market price (or at the prevailing Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share), or at all.
The London Stock Exchange has the right to suspend or limit trading in a company's securities. Any suspension or limitation on trading in the Ordinary Shares may affect the ability of Shareholders to realise their investment.
Subject to the requirement to make distributions in order to maintain investment trust status, any dividends and other distributions paid by the Company will be made at the discretion of the Board. The payment of any such dividends or other distributions will in general depend on the Company's ability to generate realised profits from Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, which, in turn, will depend on the ability to generate sufficient cashflows, the financial condition of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, the Company's current and anticipated cash needs, the Company's costs and net proceeds on any sale of its investments, legal and regulatory restrictions affecting the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments and such other factors as the Board may deem relevant from time to time. As such, investors should have no expectation as to the amount of dividends or distributions that will be paid by the Company or that dividends or distributions will be paid at all.
Investment valuation is based on financial projections for the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. Projections will primarily be based on the Investment Adviser's assessment and are only estimates of future results based on assumptions made at the time of the projection. The Company's quarterly announcements of Net Asset Value (other than the announcement in respect of the 31 December Net Asset Value in each year) will be based on estimates provided by the Investment Adviser and will not be audited. The financial information relating to Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments on which the quarterly valuations will be based will be based on management information provided by the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. Actual results may vary significantly from the projections, which may reduce the profitability of the Company leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The Euro is the main trading currency of the Company. However, the geographical target of the Company is continental Europe and the Republic of Ireland, which includes jurisdictions which have alternative local currencies. The Enhanced Pipeline includes assets which are located in non-Eurozone jurisdictions. Therefore, it is probable that the Company will hold assets in European local currencies other than Euros and consequently the Company may be exposed to currency risk. Changes in foreign currency exchange rates may affect the value of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. In addition, the Company may incur costs in connection with conversions between various currencies. As a result, the profitability of the Company may be reduced leading to lower returns to Shareholders.
The Company has no employees and the Directors have all been appointed on a non-executive basis. The Company is reliant upon the performance of third-party service providers for its executive function including the AIFM (who will be advised by the Investment Adviser), the Administrator and the Registrar. In particular, the expertise of the Investment Adviser will be critical to identifying, structuring, recommending and executing transactions as well as advising and providing asset management services in respect of the Company's Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. In turn, the successful performance of the Investment Adviser will be dependent upon the expertise of the professionals in its team and other personnel. If the Investment Adviser withdraws or is unable to provide these services or if its professionals cease to be employed by the Investment Adviser, this could have a material adverse effect on the Company's operations and results.
The termination of the Company's relationship with any third-party service provider (or the termination of the relationship between the AIFM and the Investment Adviser) or any delay in appointing a replacement for such service could disrupt the management of the Company's portfolio. Furthermore, failure by any service provider to carry out its obligations to the Company in accordance with the terms of its appointment could have a material adverse effect on the operations of the Company or the administration of its Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. Any such difficulties may lead to a reduced level of revenue generated by any or all of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments and/or the Company generally. As a result, the profitability of the Company may be reduced leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The success of the Company's investment activities depends on the Investment Adviser's ability to identify Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments and the availability of such investments. Identification and exploitation of the investment strategies to be pursued by the Company involves a high degree of uncertainty. No assurance can be given that the Investment Adviser will be able to secure suitable investment opportunities. Changes in the broader renewable energy market in which the Company seeks to invest, as well as other market factors, may reduce the scope for the Company's investment strategies. Additionally, the Company will compete with other parties including, subject to the Allocation Policy, Aquila Managed Funds, for Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. Therefore, even when a suitable investment opportunity is identified, there can be no assurance that such opportunity will be available at all or at a price or upon terms and conditions (including financing) that the Board considers satisfactory.
The Enhanced Pipeline represents investment opportunities currently held in Aquila Managed Funds or in respect of which the Aquila Group is in negotiations (including some on exclusive terms), and which the Investment Adviser considers fall within the Company's Investment Policy. However, the Company has no option or right of first refusal over those investment opportunities and there is no guarantee that the Company will ultimately acquire any investments from the Enhanced Pipeline.
The inability of the Company to acquire Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments will reduce the amount of income which the Company is able to generate. As a result, the profitability of the Company may be reduced leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The Investment Adviser manages and advises other accounts, vehicles and funds pursuing similar investment strategies to that of the Company. The appointment of the Investment Adviser by the AIFM is on a non-exclusive basis and it is anticipated that the Investment Adviser will continue to allocate a significant amount of time to advising and managing the Aquila Managed Funds. The Company is expected to enter into transactions with Aquila Managed Funds as a counterparty when acquiring, disposing of or co-investing in certain Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. The Investment Adviser or other Aquila Group entities may have rendered certain services such as origination, advisory or other services for the benefit of previous and/or existing Aquila Managed Funds which held or hold an interest in an asset targeted by the Company and in return the relevant Aquila Group entities may have received fees for such services. As a result, the Investment Adviser or other Aquila Group entity might be subject to a conflict of interest resulting from their previous involvement in relation to such asset. Additionally, it is probable that the Aquila Managed Funds will invest in assets which may be in competition with those invested in by the Company for customers, power capacity or financing opportunities. Any one of these factors may on occasion give rise to conflicts of interest which the Investment Adviser will manage in accordance with its policies and procedures relating to conflicts of interest. In particular, in relation to the allocation of investment opportunities, the Investment Adviser will follow the Allocation Policy to seek to ensure appropriate allocations between the Company and the other Aquila Managed Funds. Notwithstanding such policies, it cannot be assured that such conflict of interests will always be resolved in a manner that Shareholders perceive to be in their best interest, particularly where the Investment Adviser needs to balance divergent interests of the Company, the Aquila Managed Funds and of the Aquila Group generally. In seeking to manage such conflicts and adhering to the Allocation Policy, the Investment Adviser will not offer the Company the opportunity to invest in all Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments that fall within the Investment Policy and as a result, the profitability of the Company may be reduced leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The Company and the SPVs may use leverage for investment purposes.
Whilst the use of borrowing should enhance the total return to Shareholders where the return on the Company's portfolio exceeds the cost of borrowing, it will have the opposite effect where the return on the Company's portfolio is lower than the cost of borrowing. The use of borrowing may increase the volatility of the NAV per Ordinary Share.
However, if the value of all or any of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments were to fall to a
level such that the Company or the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment was required to pay all or part of its borrowings, either as a result of a breach of a covenant during the course of the term or because of any inability to repay at the end of the term, the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment or the Company could be in breach of covenant. In these circumstances, the Company may be forced to provide additional security or to sell various relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments in order to repay all or part of their borrowings together with any attendant costs. In such circumstances, it is conceivable that the Company may be required to sell Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. Such Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments may be difficult to realise and therefore the market price which is achievable may give rise to significant loss of value compared to the book value of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. The result of such a sale will also result in a reduction in income from the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments generally. Investors should also note that Company's lenders will rank ahead of Shareholders' entitlements.
Interest will be payable on any borrowings. As such, the borrowing entity (which may be the Company or an SPV) may be exposed to interest rate risk due to fluctuations in the prevailing market rates.
The use of leverage creates special risks and may significantly increase the Company's investment risk. Leverage creates an opportunity for greater yield and total return but, at the same time, will increase the Company's exposure to capital risk and interest costs. As a result, the profitability of the Company may be reduced leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The Company may invest in non-controlling interests, either as co- investor with other Aquila Managed Funds or otherwise, in Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, where it may (i) have limited influence or (ii) not be able to block certain decisions made collectively by the majority equity holders or senior lenders. That may result in decisions being made about the relevant investment that are not in the interests of the Company. While the Company intends to only invest in non-controlling interests where contractual and other arrangements can be negotiated to ensure, amongst other things, that no action is taken in relation to the relevant investment which would result in the Company being in breach of its Investment Policy or borrowing restrictions, the scope of the concessions available to the Company through these agreements may be limited such that the Company has little control over the relevant investment. For example, the Company may not be able to force a sale of the relevant investment to a third party, reducing the ability of the Company to divest its stake in the relevant investment. As a result of this lack of control, profitability of the Company may be restricted leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The Company may invest on terms that allow it to exercise control or influence over the management and the strategic direction of a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. The exercise of control over an investee vehicle imposes additional risks of liability for environmental damage, product defects, personal injury and other types of liability which may be unlimited in nature.
The exercise of control over a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment could expose the Company to claims for damages or reimbursement by its security holders, lenders, other investors, third party service providers and/or other creditors. As a result of any such successful claims, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders and, in the worst-case scenario, total loss of their investment.
The Company will invest into Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments through holding companies and special purpose vehicles and will therefore have to bear additional costs associated with such structures compared to direct investment as well as any structural risk (e.g. tax and legal risk) connected to the operation and maintenance of such structures. As a result, the profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The effects of the outbreak of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 ("COVID-19") in December 2019, which was announced a pandemic by the World Health Organization on 11 March 2020, on Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments and the global economy in general cannot be reliably assessed as of the date of this Prospectus. Market volatility and/or a period of recession caused by the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic may have an adverse effect on Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The Company's investment objective requires it to invest in Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments which may be both illiquid and scarce. Further, the Company will be subject to the risks associated with concentrating its investments in the renewable sector asset class.
Notwithstanding the existence of the Enhanced Pipeline, market conditions, including fluctuations in the supply and demand for, and residual value of, such renewable energy assets as the Company would seek to invest in, may increase illiquidity and scarcity and have a generally negative impact on the Investment Adviser's ability to identify and execute investments in suitable Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments that might generate acceptable returns and thereby cause "cash drag" on the Company's performance. Adverse market conditions and their consequences may have a material adverse effect on the Company's investment portfolio.
Difficult market conditions, including unanticipated changes to the regulatory framework within which the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments operate, may also adversely affect the operations and financial performance of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments on a standalone and collective basis. This may have a corresponding adverse effect on the Company's financial condition. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
As the Investment Policy targets Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments located in continental Europe and the Republic of Ireland, it is likely that certain, if not the majority, of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments will be located in jurisdictions within both the EU and the Eurozone. Concerns about credit risk of certain member states of the Eurozone have intensified since 2012. The default, or a significant decline in the credit rating, of one or more member states of the Eurozone could cause severe stress in the Eurozone financial system generally and could, in the worst case scenario, lead to the reintroduction of national currencies in one or more member states of the Eurozone and the abandonment of the Euro as a currency. Since the Company's functional currency is the Euro, an escalation of the Eurozone crisis could adversely affect the NAV of the Company and the value and returns of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments as well as the economic condition of the Company's counterparties or creditors directly or indirectly located in the Eurozone in ways which it is difficult to predict. If any of these risks materialise, the profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders and, in the worst-case scenario, total loss of investments.
Interest rates are sensitive to many factors, including governmental, monetary and tax policies, domestic and international economic and political considerations, fiscal deficits, trade surpluses or deficits, regulatory requirements and other factors beyond the control of the Company. Changes in market rates of interest could affect the Company and the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments in a variety of ways. Changes in the general level of interest rates can affect the spread between, amongst other things, the income on the Company's assets and the expense of its interest-bearing liabilities, the value of its interest-earning assets and its ability to realise gains from the sale of assets (should this be desirable). Changes in interest rates may also affect the valuation of the investment portfolio by impacting the valuation discount rate.
The Company may finance its activities with either fixed and/or floating rate debt. With respect to any floating rate debt, the Company's performance may be affected if it does not limit the effects of changes in interest rates on its operations by employing an effective hedging strategy, including engaging in interest rate swaps, caps, floors or other interest rate contracts, or buying and selling interest rate futures or options on such futures. There can be no assurance that such arrangements will be entered into or that they will be sufficient to cover such risk. Such arrangements may even turn out to be to the Company's detriment, depending upon the direction in which the rate changes.
Inflation may be higher or lower than expected. The revenue and expenditure of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments are frequently partially index-linked and therefore any discrepancy with the Company's inflation expectations could impact positively or negatively on the Company's cashflows. From a financial modelling perspective, an assumption is usually made that inflation will exist at a long-term rate (which may vary depending on country and prevailing inflation projections). The effect on revenue and price projections and more generally on investment returns if inflation overshoots or undershoots the original projections for this long-term rate is dependent on the nature of the underlying project earnings and any indexation provisions agreed with the relevant counterparty on any project. The consequences of higher or lower levels of inflation than those assumed by the Company will not be uniform across the portfolio. An investment in the Company cannot be expected to provide protection from the effects of inflation or deflation. In the event that actual inflation differs from forecasts or projected levels, the profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The Company may, in accordance with the Investment Policy, invest up to 30 per cent. of its Gross Asset Value in Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments which are under development and/or construction. Assets which are under construction or development may be exposed to certain risks, such as cost overruns, failure to achieve projected capacity or efficiency and construction delay, which may be outside the Company's control.
If the planning, development and construction of power plants, facilities and/or infrastructures are undertaken by third parties, these matters are outside the direct control of the Company or the SPVs. During the planning, development and construction of the relevant plants, facilities and/or infrastructures, there is the possibility that the Investment Adviser is unable to continuously supervise the responsible third party. Any error or deviation from planning during the development and construction phase may lead to additional costs or expenses being incurred by the SPV and could thus result in a lower profit of the Company. In addition, if the relevant developer is not able to complete the development, the SPV would then have to appoint another developer or undertake the development itself. This could result in delays in the timely completion of the project and cost overruns which could have an effect on the Company's financial position. If no compensation from the relevant third party (or its guarantor) can be obtained, the ability of the relevant SPV to meet any financial liabilities or to distribute dividends or pay interest upon any debt instrument issued by it to the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company may be adversely affected. As a result, the profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders and in the worst-case scenario total loss of their investment.
The Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments are at risk that their power plants, facilities and/ or infrastructures may not be fully functional due to construction errors or defects. If a third party is liable to repair or remedy any such defect, there is a risk that such third party will not carry out such repair or remedy by the agreed deadline or at all. Furthermore, the third party may not be able to pay the relevant compensation to the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment and the relevant defects may not be sufficiently covered by any other warranty. Even if such defects are covered by warranty, there is a possibility that such defects may only occur after the warranty period expires, or that the relevant damages exceed the scope of the warranty and therefore cannot be fully recovered. Operational failures or malfunction of the power plants, facilities and/or infrastructures and delays in the production or supply of energy may impair the profitability of the Company leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
The investment objective of the Company is to acquire Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments that fall within its Investment Policy. The vendor will typically provide various warranties for the benefit of the acquirer and its funders in relation to the acquisition. Such warranties will be limited in extent and are typically subject to disclosure, time limitations, materiality thresholds and liability caps and to the extent that any loss suffered by the acquirer arises outside the warranties or such limitations or caps are exceeded, it will be borne by the acquirer, which may adversely affect the income received by the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
Prior to the acquisition of a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment, commercial, financial, technical and legal due diligence on the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment will be undertaken. Notwithstanding that such due diligence is undertaken, it may not uncover all of the material risks affecting the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment, and/or such risks may not be adequately protected against in the acquisition documentation. The Company may acquire Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments with unknown liabilities and without any recourse, or with limited recourse, with respect to unknown liabilities. However, if an unknown liability was later asserted in respect of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment, the Company might be required to pay substantial sums to settle it or enter into litigation proceedings, which could adversely affect cash flow and the result of its operations. Accordingly, in the event that material risks are not uncovered and/or such risks are not adequately protected against, this may have a material adverse effect on the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment and the Company. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
The Company will have reliance on due diligence reports prepared by professionals appointed by the Investment Adviser in relation to a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. There is a risk that, notwithstanding this reliance relationship, the relevant professional adviser has limited its liability or is otherwise able to avoid liability to the Company. Should that be the case, the Company may be unable to recover losses suffered as a result of its reliance on such professional adviser.
The Company is subject to the risk of the inability of any counterparty to perform its contractual obligations, whether due to insolvency, bankruptcy, annulment, invalidity, early termination or other causes. If there is a failure or default by the counterparty to such a transaction, the Company will have legal and/or contractual remedies pursuant to the agreements related to the transaction (which may or may not be meaningful depending on the financial position of the defaulting counterparty). As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders and, in the worst-case scenario, total loss of their investment.
The Company intends to invest in Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments that are remunerated by both government support schemes and private PPAs. Any agreement with governmental authorities may contain clauses more favourable to the governmental counterparty than a typical commercial contract and may restrict the Company's ability to operate the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment in a way that maximises cash flows and profitability. For instance, such agreements may include termination clauses permitting a governmental authority to terminate the agreement under certain circumstances without payment of adequate compensation. Furthermore, governmental authorities have considerable discretion in implementing regulations that could impact the renewable energy market, and because Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments provide basic, everyday services and face limited competition, governments may be influenced by political considerations and may make decisions that adversely affect the Company's investments.
There is a risk that if contracts or other arrangements with governmental authorities are amended, legally deficient or unenforceable, the returns of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments may be affected. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
Environmental laws and regulations in the jurisdictions in which Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment is located, may have an impact on the assets' activities. It is not possible to predict accurately the effects of future changes in such laws or regulations on the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment's performance. There can be no assurance that environmental costs and liabilities will not be incurred in the future. In addition, environmental regulators may seek to impose injunctions or other sanctions on a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment's operations that may have a material adverse effect on its financial condition.
To the extent that environmental liabilities arise in the future in relation to any sites owned or used by a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment including, but not limited to, clean-up and remediation liabilities, depending on the contractual arrangements a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment or the Company may be required to contribute financially towards any such liabilities, and the level of such contribution may not be restricted by the value of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. If any such financial contributions are required, the profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns to Shareholders.
Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments may cause environmental hazards or nuisances to their local human populations, flora and fauna and nature generally. The existence or noise of turbine blades, the existence of solar panels or related infrastructure may cause a nuisance to the local (human) population and may also cause harm to local bird or bat populations. The Company cannot guarantee that its Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments will not be considered a source of nuisance, pollution or other environmental harm or that claims will not be made against the Company by, amongst others, the local (human) population in connection with its Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments and their effects on the natural environment and/or human populations. This could lead to increased cost of compliance and/or abatement of the construction or generation activities for affected Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. If any such risks materialise, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders and, in the worst-case scenario, total loss of their investment.
Most of the instruments to be acquired by the Company are not listed or traded on regulated markets. This is particularly the case for those investments the Company intends to make in debt instruments issued by a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. Accordingly, the liquidity of such instruments is fairly limited and it cannot be assured that these instruments will be disposed of at desirable prices or at all. Investments in debt instruments involve various risks. In particular, the Company is exposed to the risk that the issuer of debt instruments may be unable to make timely payments or at all due to financial difficulties or insolvency. In such circumstances, extensive additional costs may be incurred, for example as a result of initiating litigation, seizure or foreclosure or other actions to recover the outstanding amounts. If any such risks materialise, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
The acquisition or construction of power plants, facilities and/or infrastructures may be financed through external loans or other instruments, either alone or together with third parties in a consortium, where appropriate. There is a risk that the relevant lender does not or cannot make available the loan amount. In such case, an alternative financing for the acquisition of these plants, facilities and/or infrastructures will need to be procured. If no alternative financing is possible or it is only available on less favourable terms and conditions, the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment could become insolvent and thus incur partial or total loss, in particular where claims are subordinated to those of other creditors. In case of a minority interest in a consortium, the Company's influence may be limited, and where matters are subject to the resolutions of the consortium partners (e.g. termination, deferrals, claims waiver), it may need to accept majority voting which may not be in the best interest of the Company. As a result of any such risks, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders and in the worst-case scenario total loss of their investment.
Obligations under mezzanine instruments are usually subordinated to all senior lenders of the relevant investments. If the Company invests in mezzanine instruments it may only be repaid after all senior obligations have been satisfied. Accordingly, the Company is exposed to a higher risk of default or nonpayments in relation to its mezzanine instruments compared to senior debt instruments. In addition, the Company will rank lower than any senior lender against any security granted by the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment over its assets. Accordingly, a holder of mezzanine instruments typically has little influence or control over the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment especially in the event of a default. If any of the above risks materialise, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
The Company's investment strategy includes the acquisition of equity interests in Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. The claims of equity holders are subordinated to any creditors and are only entitled to receive dividends if there are distributable reserves. Therefore, the success of an equity participation depends on the performance and income of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments may be subject to environmental, social, or governance
risks ("ESG Risks"). Environmental risks include unexpected changes to the environmental circumstances in connection with climate change such as transitional or physical risks. Social risks include unexpected changes due to social aspects including disputes with employees, conflicts with or within local communities, riots, adverse health conditions as well as reputational risks resulting from social risks. Governance risks include risks due to inadequate compliance with governance requirements including tax honesty, anti-corruption measures and remuneration policies. If and to the extent ESG Risks materialise, the profitability of the Company may be reduced leading to lower returns to Shareholders.
Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments' revenue consist almost exclusively of remuneration for the supply of electricity generated. This depends largely on actual weather conditions affecting the power plants such as the usable wind intensity or solar irradiation at each site. Actual annual wind speed, solar irradiation or hydro power rates may fluctuate resulting in lower long-term average rates with a corresponding effect on the amount of electricity generated. There is also risk of weather cycles that are deficient in the type of weather conditions required to produce energy at the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment.
In addition, less wind intensity, solar irradiation or hydropower in different European regions or across may occur due to local and global climate changes. Furthermore, increased extreme weather conditions could also lead to a change in the wind intensity, solar irradiation and hydropower which may negatively affect output of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. The occurrence of other geological event, such as earthquakes or landslides could cause damage or destruction of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment.
If such risks materialise, the ability of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment to repay the principal or interest of debt instruments issued by it and held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company may be adversely affected. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders and in the worst-case scenario total loss of their investment.
Energy yield forecasts are to a large extent based on historical climate data and certain IT based simulations/calculations. There is a risk that such forecasts prove inaccurate and, in particular, extreme weather conditions may lead to greater fluctuation from historically recorded data. Climate changes may result in less or limited sunshine, reduced wind, lower hydro power which all may serve to reduce power generated over the entire forecasting period which in turn may lead to less revenue being generated at a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
Investments in wind, solar or hydropower are subject to operating and technical risks, including the risk of mechanical breakdown, spare parts shortages, flawed design specifications, pipeline or offtake disruptions, power shutdowns, work interruptions including labour strikes or labour disputes, and other unanticipated events which adversely affect operations. While the Company will seek wind, solar and hydropower investments with creditworthy and appropriately bonded and insured third parties who bear many of these risks, there can be no assurance that any or all such risks can be mitigated. An operating failure may lead to loss of a licence, concession or contract, on which a hydropower, wind or solar investment may be dependent. In addition, the long-term profitability of hydropower investments, once constructed, is partly dependent upon the efficient operation and maintenance of the assets. Inefficient operations and maintenance, or limitations in the skills, experience or resources of operating companies, may reduce revenue. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
The construction and operation of power plants, facilities and/or infrastructure require regulatory approvals in most jurisdictions. Even with careful planning and verification, it is possible that not all necessary permits or licenses for the construction and operation of each power plant, facility and/or infrastructures in each relevant jurisdiction will be obtained and/or retained. Each Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment is also subject to the risk that a particular permit or license is altered, withdrawn or expires and cannot be extended, which can lead to suspension, delay or restriction in the construction or operation of the affected power plant, facility and/or infrastructures. In addition, relevant authorities may impose conditions on the commencement or duration of the construction and/or operation of the power plants, facilities and/ or infrastructure. This may delay or restrict the construction and/or operation of the plants, facilities and/ or infrastructure and/or increase the costs of operation. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders and, in the worst-case scenario, total loss of their investment.
The technical availability of power plants may be reduced due to shutdowns or service interruptions (for example, unscheduled repair or maintenance work), leading to temporary or permanent lower or no electric current. If such risk materialises, the ability of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment to repay the principal or interest of debt instruments issued by it and held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company may be adversely affected. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
In the case of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, the Company is exposed to the risk that a deterioration of power plant efficiency may lead to lower electricity output. For many renewable energy generation plants, their efficiency is only partially guaranteed by their manufacturers. This factor plays a significant role in energy generation forecast. There is a risk that the actual efficiency may deviate from the guaranteed efficiency (due to, for example, pollution, vegetation, snow or wear) thereby impairing the current production output. In addition, the loss of power, or the so-called degradation may be higher than that guaranteed by the manufacturer, which may result in lower revenue generated by the power plant. If this risk materialises, the ability of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment to repay the principal or interest of debt instruments issued by it and held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company may be adversely affected. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
In the case of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, the Company is subject to the risk that the power plants may be destroyed or suffer material damage, and the existing insurances may not be sufficient to cover all the losses and damages. In particular, geological conditions (such as floods) may cause damage to the power facilities or even total loss of the power plants. This can adversely affect the ability of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment to repay the principal or interest of debt instruments issued by it and held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
The Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, will be subject to the risk that, due to interruption in the grid connection or irregularities in the overall power supply, power may not be generated or supplied. In such case, affected Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment's may not receive any compensation or only limited compensation in accordance with the relevant contractual or statutory provisions. This may adversely affect the ability of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment to repay the principal or interest of debt instruments issued by it and held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
The Company may make investments in projects and concessions with revenue exposure to power prices. The market price of electricity is volatile and is affected by a variety of factors, including market demand for electricity, the generation mix of power plants, government support for various forms of power generation, as well as fluctuations in the market prices of commodities and foreign exchange. Whilst some Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments may benefit from fixed price arrangements for a period of time, others may have revenue which is in part based on prevailing power prices.
Many factors could lead to changes in market demand for electricity, including changes in consumer
demand patterns. Increased usage of smart grids, a rise in demand for electric vehicle charging capacity and residential participation in renewable energy generation could all impact demand levels and patterns for electricity. There can be no guarantee that the Company's investments will be positively impacted by such changing dynamics. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders and in the worst-case scenario total loss of their investment.
Furthermore, to the extent that the Company enters into contracts to fix the price that it receives on the electricity generated or enters into derivatives with a view to hedging against fluctuations in power prices (such as corporate CFDs), the Company, as the case may be, will be exposed to risk related to delivering an amount of electricity over a specific period. If there are periods of non-production the Company may need to pay the difference between the price it has sold the power at and the market price at that time. In circumstances where the market price is higher than the fixed or hedged price this could have a material adverse effect on the Company's profitability, Net Asset Value and the price of the Ordinary Shares. To the extent that the Company relies on derivative instruments (such as corporate CFDs) to hedge its exposure to fluctuations in power prices, it will be subject to counterparty risk. A failure by a hedging counterparty to discharge its obligations could have a material adverse effect on the Company's profitability, the Net Asset Value and the price of the Ordinary Shares.
Some of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments of the Company will be subject to commodity price risk, including without limitation, the price of electricity and the price of fuel. The operation and cash flows of certain investments will depend, in substantial part, upon prevailing market prices for electricity and fuel, and particularly natural gas. These market prices may fluctuate naturally depending upon a wide variety of factors, including, without limitation, weather conditions, foreign and domestic market supply and demand, force majeure events, changes in law or regulatory regimes, price and availability of alternative fuels and energy sources, international political conditions including those in the Middle East, actions of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (and other oil and natural gas producing nation) and overall economic conditions.
The Company may hedge the interest rate exposure in relation to any loan granted to it or the exposure to fluctuating electricity prices in respect of any Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. To the extent that the Company engages in interest rate or electricity price hedging transactions, the Company and the Shareholders may be exposed to certain additional risks. In particular there can be no guarantee that the hedges which the Company puts in place will be effective. For example, electricity price hedging will not cover any period of non-production by the plant and therefore the Company will be required to pay the difference between market price and the relevant hedge price.
The performance of the Company may be affected by reason of events such as war, civil war, riot or armed conflict, radioactive, chemical or biological contamination, pressure waves, environmental occurrences and acts of terrorism which are outside its control. The occurrence of such events may have a variety of adverse consequences for the Company, including risks and costs related to the damage or destruction of property owned or used in which the Company has invested, inability to use one or more such properties for their intended uses for an extended period, decline in income or property (and therefore investment) value, and injury or loss of life, as well as litigation relation thereto. Such risks may not be insurable or may be insurable only at rates that the Company deems uneconomic.
Renewable energy power generation and transmission plants and facilities are not only technically highly complex and sensitive, their relevant technologies are also relatively new. There is only limited longterm experience with respect to durability of power plants. In some cases, there are few comparable systems worldwide that can be used to forecast the durability of the plants. Therefore, there is a risk that the power plants, for unforeseeable reasons, cannot be used over the entire forecast period for their intended use, or achieve or maintain the predicted capacity or efficiency. Additional costs may incur for renewal or replacement of the power plants or their system components. In particular, there is a risk of damage or even destruction of the plants due to extreme weather conditions such as storms, hail, snow/ ice, earthquakes and other geological risks, which are likely to occur increasingly in the future and may also occur in areas or regions that seem to have been unproblematic so far.
Furthermore, due to the geographical location of the sites of the plants (for example, proximity to the river), there is a risk of increased corrosion or wear on system components which may result in additional maintenance costs or expenses. Such circumstances may adversely affect the repayment of the principal or interest of debt instruments held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders and in the worst-case scenario total loss of their investment.
This risk arises where a change could occur in the way a service or product is delivered rendering the existing technology obsolete. Given the significant fixed costs involved in constructing assets in the infrastructure sector and the fact that many infrastructure technologies are well established, any technology change that occurs over the medium term could threaten the profitability of a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment, in particular due to the financing projections that are dependent on an extended project life. If such a change were to occur, these assets would have very few alternative uses should they become obsolete.
The operation of power plants and/or infrastructures entails compliance with legal safety requirements. Non-compliance may result in claims for damages against the Company that are not covered by insurance. This could adversely affect the repayment of the principal or interest of debt instruments held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders in the worst-case scenario total loss of their investment.
The construction and maintenance of power plants and infrastructures may result in bodily injury or industrial accidents, particularly if an individual were to fall from a great height or be electrocuted. If an accident were to occur in relation to one or more of the Company's Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, the Company could be liable for damages or compensation to the extent such loss is not covered under existing insurance policies. Liability for health and safety could have a material adverse effect on the business, financial position, results of operations and business prospects of the Company.
Residual demand, usage and throughput risk can affect the performance of infrastructure investments. To the extent that the assumptions made regarding the demand, usage and throughput of assets prove incorrect, returns could be adversely affected. The Company may invest in infrastructure investments that derive substantially all of their revenues from collecting usage fees from users of a given infrastructure in accordance with an agreement or a regulatory and/or legal framework. Users of such infrastructure directly and/or indirectly operated by the Company may react negatively to any adjustments to the applicable usage fee rates, or public pressure may cause relevant government authorities to challenge the usage fee rates by reducing the usage fees, loosening the usage conditions, increasing the quality/quantity of the service and the conditions under which the services are to be provided. Users of infrastructure may react adversely to usage fee rates, for example, by avoiding using the infrastructure or refusing to pay the usage fee, resulting in lower volumes and reduced usage revenues.
In addition, adverse public opinion, or lobbying efforts by specific interest groups, as a result of factors such as general economic conditions, negative consumer perception of increases in usage fee rates, the prevailing rate of inflation, volume and public sentiment about prevailing usage fee rates could result in governmental pressure on infrastructure investments to reduce their usage fee rates, to forego planned rate increases, to loosen user conditions or to increase the quality of the provided services. The Company cannot guarantee that any public regulator or authority will not try to exempt certain user categories from usage fees or negotiate lower usage fee rates. If public pressure or government action forces infrastructure investments to restrict their usage fee rate increases or reduce their usage fee rates, and they are not able to secure adequate compensation to restore the economic balance of the project, the Company's business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially and adversely affected.
After completion of the operation phase, the power plants, facilities and/or infrastructures may be dismantled and the land restored to its original condition. So far there is limited information and experience with respect to the decommissioning and dismantling of power plants, facilities and/or infrastructures, especially for renewable energy. In addition, such dismantling, disposal and restoration may be subject to additional unforeseen costs to be borne by the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment.
If the power plants, facilities and/or infrastructures are to be sold to third parties, it cannot be assured that such power plants, facilities and/or infrastructures can be sold by the desired deadline or at the desired purchase price due to economic fluctuations or changing market conditions in the energy and/ or respective infrastructure sector. If any of these risks materialise, the ability of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment to repay the principal or interest of debt instruments issued by it and held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company may be adversely affected. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders.
Investments in renewable energy depend largely upon governmental grants and permits or license requirements. The renewable energy sector is the subject of intense and sometimes rapidly changing regulation in many jurisdictions. Therefore, the Company is exposed to the risk that the competent authorities may pass legislation that might hinder or invalidate rights under existing contracts as well as hinder or impair the obtaining and/or retaining of the necessary permits or licenses necessary for Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments in the development or operational phase. Furthermore, the relevant licenses and permits may be adversely altered, revoked, or in the case of their expirations not be extended by the relevant authorities. In addition, the competent legislative bodies, authorities or other state or municipal institutions or organisations may in the future amend or repeal existing laws, regulations or guidelines. If such risk materialises, the repayment of the principal or interest of debt instruments issued by it and held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company may be adversely affected. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders and in the worst-case scenario total loss of their investment.
Many countries have provided incentives in the form of feed-in tariffs and other incentives to power plant owners, distributors, system integrators in order to promote the use of renewable energy. Many of these government incentives expire, phase out over time, terminate upon the exhaustion of the allocated funding, require renewal by the applicable authority or will be amended by governments due to changing market circumstances (such as market price fluctuations or oversupply of produced electricity) or changes to national, state or local energy policy. There is also possibility that power plants in which the Company invests may operate in countries where no such incentives are permitted by law. In such case, the economic success of a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment depends largely on market conditions and is subject to risks which may result in decreased revenue thereby adversely affecting the ability of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment to repay the principal or interest of debt instruments issued by it and held by the Company or the performance of any equity interest held by the Company. As a result, profitability of the Company may be impaired leading to reduced returns for Shareholders and in the worst-case scenario total loss of their investment.
On 23 June 2016, UK citizens voted in favour of the UK leaving the EU which is referred to as "Brexit". The UK served notice of its departure to the EU on 29 March 2017, thereby initiating the two year formal process for negotiating the UK's exit from the EU with other EU member states. The implications of this decision are still not known as at the date of this document. The uncertainty caused by the ongoing negotiation and potential outcome may lead to heightened levels of market volatility both in the UK, the EU and globally.
Brexit could adversely affect the UK, European and worldwide economic and market conditions and could contribute to instability in global financial and foreign exchange markets, including volatility in the value of sterling and the Euro (the Euro being the Company's functional currency).
Accordingly, there will be a period of prolonged uncertainty regarding aspects of the UK economy including the possibility of a period of recession, together with other risks which could materially and adversely affect the legal, operational, regulatory and tax regime(s) to which the Company is currently subject. The effect of these risks could also be to increase compliance and operating costs whilst restricting the movement of its capital and the mobility of its personnel.
The Company's ability to raise new capital could be hindered by any heightened market volatility caused by Brexit in the shorter term. In the longer term, if any changes to the national private placement regimes on which the Company currently relies to raise capital from certain investors based in the EEA arise as a result of Brexit or otherwise, this could restrict the Company's ability to market its Shares in the EEA, which in turn may have a negative effect on marketing and liquidity of the Shares generally. Pursuant to the Placing Agreement, Numis and Kempen & Co. have a right of termination in circumstances in which the performance of either parties' duties under the Placing Agreement creates any regulatory issues as a result of Brexit.
Brexit could also adversely affect the operational, regulatory, insurance and tax regime to which the Company is currently subject. Any of these effects of Brexit, and others that the Directors cannot anticipate at this stage given the political and economic uncertainty surrounding the nature of the UK's future relationship with the European Union, could adversely affect the Company's business, financial condition and cash flows. They could also negatively impact the value of the Company and make accurate valuations of the Shares and investments more difficult.
The uncertainty created by the outcome of the referendum may also lead to heightened levels of market and currency volatility both in the UK and globally. Any of these risks, taken singularly or in aggregate, could have a material adverse effect on the Company's business, financial position and results of operations.
The AIFM Directive seeks to regulate managers of alternative investment funds ("AIFs") and imposes obligations on such managers ("AIFMs") which are located in the EEA and in respect of the marketing of funds to investors in the EEA by non-EU managers.
The Company is (as at the date of this Prospectus) an EU AIF and the AIFM has been appointed as the Company's non-EU AIFM for the purposes of the AIFM Directive. The AIFM does not intend to be subject to the AIFM Directive except to the extent that it is required to comply with certain provisions of the AIFM Directive (and laws and regulations made under it) in order to permit the marketing of Ordinary Shares to potential investors in the United Kingdom and EEA member states, and to report to the competent regulatory authorities in those states where the Ordinary Shares have been marketed in accordance with, and to the extent required by, the AIFM Directive. In this regard, the AIFM Directive allows the marketing of an EU AIF such as the Company, either on its own behalf or through its agent, under national private placement regimes, where individual EEA states so choose. The United Kingdom has adopted such a private placement regime, as have numerous EEA states, albeit that marketing to investors in certain EEA states is subject to additional conditions imposed by national law. Such marketing is subject to, inter alia: (i) the requirement that appropriate cooperation agreements continue to be in place between the supervisory authorities of the relevant EEA states and the GFSC, (ii) Guernsey not being on the Financial Action Task Force blacklist of high-risk and non-cooperative jurisdictions; and (iii) compliance with certain aspects of the AIFM Directive as described above. Furthermore, the UK position in relation to the AIFM Directive following Brexit is currently unclear and may be subject to change which could materially impact the Company and the consequences of which are currently unknown as at the date of this Prospectus.
The ability of the Company or its agents to market the Company's securities (including the Ordinary Shares) in the EEA, and accordingly to make the Issue or any further issue of securities available to Shareholders based in those jurisdictions, depends on the relevant EEA member state permitting the marketing of non-EEA managed EEA funds and, the continuing status of the United Kingdom and the FCA and Guernsey and the GFSC in relation to the AIFM Directive and the AIFM's willingness to comply with the relevant provisions of the AIFM Directive and the other requirements of the national private placement regimes of relevant individual EEA states. In cases where such provisions are not or cannot be satisfied, the ability of the Company to market Ordinary Shares under the Issue or the Placing Programme or raise further equity capital in such EEA states may be limited or removed entirely.
Any regulatory changes arising from implementation of the AIFM Directive (or otherwise) which limit the Company's ability to market the Ordinary Shares may materially adversely affect the Company's ability to carry out the Investment Policy successfully and to achieve its investment objective. It may also result in certain Shareholders not being able to participate in future capital raisings.
The Company is not, and does not intend to become, registered in the United States as an investment company under the U.S. Investment Company Act and related rules and regulations. The U.S. Investment Company Act provides certain protections to investors and imposes certain restrictions on companies that are registered as investment companies.
As the Company is not registered and does not plan to register, none of these protections or restrictions is or will be applicable to the Company. In addition, to avoid being required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act, the Board may, under the Articles and subject to certain conditions, compulsorily require the transfer of Ordinary Shares held by a person to whom the sale or transfer of Ordinary Shares may cause the Company to be classified as an investment company under the U.S. Investment Company Act. These procedures may materially affect certain Shareholders' ability to transfer their Ordinary Shares.
Under the current Plan Asset Regulations, if interests held by Benefit Plan Investors are deemed to be "significant" within the meaning of the Plan Asset Regulations (broadly, if Benefit Plan Investors hold 25 per cent. or greater of any class of equity interest in the Company) then the assets of the Company may be deemed to be "plan assets" within the meaning of the Plan Asset Regulations. After the Issue, the Company may be unable to monitor whether Benefit Plan Investors or investors acquire Ordinary Shares and therefore, there can be no assurance that Benefit Plan Investors will never acquire Ordinary Shares or that, if they do, the ownership of all Benefit Plan Investors will be below the 25 per cent. threshold discussed above or that the Company's assets will not otherwise constitute "plan assets" under Plan Asset Regulations. If the Company's assets were deemed to constitute "plan assets" within the meaning of the Plan Asset Regulations, certain transactions that the Company might enter into in the ordinary course of business and operation might constitute non-exempt prohibited transactions under ERISA or the U.S. Tax Code, resulting in excise taxes or other liabilities under ERISA or the U.S. Tax Code. In addition, any fiduciary of a Benefit Plan Investor or an employee benefit plan subject to Similar Law that is responsible for the Plan's investment in the Ordinary Shares could be liable for any ERISA violations or violations of such Similar Law relating to the Company.
An investment in the Company involves tax considerations in the United Kingdom and, in the countries in which investments are located. The Company may be subject to tax (in particular but not exclusively withholding tax) in the countries in which investment are located which may not be refundable.
The Company might be exposed to tax risks resulting from deviating interpretations of applicable tax laws by the tax authorities or adverse amendments to current legislation. Changes in tax legislation, administrative practice or case law or treatments of tax facts by the relevant tax authorities which deviate from the Company's assessments could result in a higher tax burden. The realisation of any of these risks, alone or in combination, may have adverse effects on the Company's business, financial condition and results of operations.
Representations in this document concerning the taxation of Shareholders and the Company are based on law and practice as at the date of this Prospectus. These are, in principle, subject to change and prospective investors should be aware that such changes may affect the Company's ability to generate returns for Shareholders and/or the taxation of such returns to Shareholders. If you are in any doubt as to your tax position you should consult an appropriate independent professional adviser.
Any change in the Company's tax status, or in taxation legislation or the taxation regime, or in the interpretation or application of taxation legislation applicable to the Company (including failure by the Company to satisfy the conditions of Chapter 4 of Part 24 CTA 2010) or the companies comprised in the portfolio, could affect the value of the investments held by the Company, the Company's ability to achieve its stated objective, the Company's ability to provide returns to Shareholders and/or alter the post-tax returns to Shareholders.
A number of countries have introduced beneficial tax and subsidy regimes to support the generation of renewable energy. In at least one instance this regime has been subject to retrospective change by the jurisdiction concerned. Any such change could have a material adverse effect on the Company.
The Company has qualified as an investment trust. The Company must continue to comply with Chapter 4 of Part 24 CTA 2010. Were the Company to breach Chapter 4 of Part 24 CTA 2010, it could be expected to lose investment trust status and, as a consequence, capital gains accruing to the Company might be
The principal requirements to qualify as an investment trust under Chapter 4 of Part 24 CTA 2010 are that: (1) the Company is approved for the period by the Commissioners for HMRC; (2) the Company's business must consist of investing its funds in shares, land or other assets with the aim of spreading investment risk and giving members of the Company the benefit of the results of the management of its funds; (3) the Ordinary Shares must be admitted to trading on a Regulated Market; (4) the Company is not a venture capital trust (within the meaning of Part 6 of the Income Taxes Act 2007) or a UK REIT (within the meaning of Part 12 CTA 2010; (5) the Company is not a close company (as defined in Chapter 2 of Part 10 CTA 2010); and (6) the Company must not retain in respect of any accounting period an amount which is greater than 15 per cent. of its income.
The U.S. Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2010 (commonly known as "FATCA") is a set of provisions contained in the US Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment Act 2010. FATCA is aimed at reducing tax evasion by US citizens.
FATCA imposes a withholding tax of 30 per cent. on (i) certain US source interest, dividends and certain other types of income; and (ii) the gross proceeds from the sale or disposition of assets which produce US source interest or dividends, which are received by a foreign financial institution ("FFI"), unless the FFI complies with certain reporting and other related obligations under FATCA. The UK has concluded an intergovernmental agreement ("IGA") with the US, pursuant to which parts of FATCA have been effectively enacted into UK law.
Under the IGA, an FFI that is resident in the UK (a "Reporting FI") is not subject to withholding under FATCA provided that it complies with the terms of the IGA, including requirements to register with the IRS and requirements to identify, and report certain information on, accounts held by US persons owning, directly or indirectly, an equity or debt interest in the Company (other than equity and debt interests that are regularly traded on an established securities market, for which see below), and report on accounts held by certain other persons or entities to HMRC.
The Company expects that it will be treated as a Reporting FI pursuant to the IGA and that it will comply with the requirements under the IGA. The Company also expects that its Ordinary Shares may, in accordance with current HMRC practice, comply with the conditions set out in the IGA to be "regularly traded on an established securities market" meaning that the Company should not have to report specific information on its Shareholders and their investments to HMRC. However, there can be no assurance that the Company will be treated as a Reporting FI, that its Ordinary Shares will be considered to be "regularly traded on an established securities market" or that it would not in the future be subject to withholding tax under FATCA or the IGA. If the Company becomes subject to a withholding tax as a result of FATCA or the IGA, the return on investment of some or all Shareholders may be materially adversely affected.
FATCA, the IGA and the Additional IGAs are complex. The above description is based in part on regulations, official guidance, and the IGA, all of which are subject to change. All prospective investors and Shareholders should consult with their own tax advisers regarding the possible implications of FATCA or FATCA-style legislation on their investment in the Company.
The market price of the Ordinary Shares may not reflect the value of the underlying investments of the Company and may be subject to wide fluctuations in response to many factors, including, amongst other things, additional issuances or future sales of the Company's shares or other securities exchangeable for, or convertible into, its Shares in the future, the addition or departure of Board members or key individuals at the Investment Adviser, divergence in financial results from stock market expectations, changes in stock market analyst recommendations regarding the Company or any of its assets or the health and social care real estate sector, a perception that other market sectors may have higher growth prospects, general economic conditions, prevailing interest rates, legislative changes affecting investment trusts or investments in renewable energy assets and other events and factors within or outside the Company's control. Stock markets experience extreme price and volume volatility from time to time, and this, in addition to general economic, political and other conditions, may materially adversely affect the market price for the Ordinary Shares. The market value of the Ordinary Shares may vary considerably from the Company's underlying Net Asset Value. There can be no assurance, express or implied, that Shareholders will receive back the amount of their investment in the Ordinary Shares.
The Company has Shareholder approval to make market purchases of up to 14.99 per cent. of the Ordinary Shares in issue as at 8 June 2020 (and the Directors intend to seek annual (or, if required, more frequent) renewal of this authority from Shareholders) and subject to the requirements of the Companies Act, the Articles and other applicable legislation, the Company may thus purchase Ordinary Shares in the market with the intention of, amongst other things, enhancing the Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share. The Company may decide to make any such purchases (and the timing of such purchases), however, at the absolute discretion of the Directors. There can be no assurance that any purchases will take place or that any purchases will have the effect of narrowing any discount to Net Asset Value at which the Ordinary Shares may trade.
Further issues of Ordinary Shares, including pursuant to the Placing Programme, are likely, subject to compliance with the relevant provisions of the Companies Act and the Articles, to be made on a non-preemptive basis. Existing holders of Ordinary Shares may, depending on the level of their participation in the relevant share issue, have the percentage of voting rights they hold in the Company diluted.
Sales of Ordinary Shares or interests in Ordinary Shares by the Board or the Investment Adviser could cause the market price of the Ordinary Shares to decline. The Directors and the Investment Adviser may sell their Ordinary Shares in the market. The sale of a substantial number of Ordinary Shares by these parties, or the perception that sales of this type could occur, could cause the market price of the Ordinary Shares to decline. This may make it more difficult for Shareholders to sell the Ordinary Shares at a time and price that they deem appropriate.
Although the Ordinary Shares are freely transferable, there are certain circumstances in which the Board may, under the Articles and subject to certain conditions, compulsorily require the transfer of the Ordinary Shares.
These circumstances include where a transfer of Ordinary Shares would cause, or is likely to cause: (i) the assets of the Company to be considered "plan assets" under the Plan Asset Regulations; (ii) the Company to be required to register under the Investment Company Act, or the Investment Adviser or the AIFM to be required to register as "investment advisers" under the Investment Advisers Act; (iii) the Company to be required to register under the US Exchange Act or any similar legislation, amongst others; or (iv) the Company to be unable to comply with its obligations under the Foreign Account Tax Compliance Provisions (commonly known as FATCA or CRS).
If prospective investors are in any doubt as to the consequences of their acquiring, holding or disposing of Ordinary Shares, they should consult their stockbroker, bank manager, solicitor, accountant or other independent financial adviser.
This Prospectus should be read in its entirety before making any application for Ordinary Shares. In assessing an investment in the Company, investors should rely only on the information in this Prospectus. No person has been authorised to give any information or make any representations other than those contained in this Prospectus and, if given or made, such information or representations must not be relied on as having been authorised by the Company, the Directors, the Investment Adviser, Numis, Kempen & Co or any of their respective affiliates, directors, officers, employees or agents or any other person.
Without prejudice to any obligation of the Company to publish a supplementary prospectus, neither the delivery of this Prospectus nor any subscription or purchase of Ordinary Shares made pursuant to this Prospectus shall, under any circumstances, create any implication that there has been no change in the affairs of the Company since, or that the information contained herein is correct at any time subsequent to, the date of this Prospectus.
An investment in the Company is suitable only for investors who are capable of evaluating the risks and merits of such investment, who understand the potential risk of capital loss and that there may be limited liquidity in the underlying investments of the Company and the Ordinary Shares, for whom an investment in the Ordinary Shares constitutes part of a diversified investment portfolio, who fully understand and are willing to assume the risks involved in investing in the Company and who have sufficient resources to bear any loss (which may be equal to the whole amount invested) which might result from such investment. Typical investors in the Company are expected to be asset and wealth managers regulated or authorised by the FCA, other institutional and sophisticated investors and professionally advised private individuals (some of whom may invest through brokers).
In connection with the Issue and each Subsequent Placing, each of Numis and Kempen & Co and any of their affiliates acting as an investor for its or their own account(s), may subscribe for the Ordinary Shares and, in that capacity, may retain, purchase, sell, offer to sell or otherwise deal for its or their own account(s) in such securities of the Company, any other securities of the Company or other related investments in connection with the Issue, each Subsequent Placing or otherwise. Accordingly, references in this document to the Ordinary Shares being issued, offered, subscribed or otherwise dealt with, should be read as including any issue or offer to, or subscription or dealing by each of Numis and Kempen & Co any of their respective affiliates acting as an investor for its or their own account(s). Numis and Kempen & Co do not intend to disclose the extent of any such investment or transactions otherwise than in accordance with any legal or regulatory obligation to do so.
If you are in any doubt about the contents of this Prospectus, you should consult your stockbroker, bank manager, solicitor, accountant, legal or professional adviser or other financial adviser.
The Ordinary Shares are designed to be held over the long term and may not be suitable as short- term investments. There is no guarantee that any appreciation in the value of the Company's investments will occur and investors may not get back the full value of their investment. Any investment objectives of the Company are targets only and should not be treated as assurances or guarantees of performance.
A prospective investor should be aware that the value of an investment in the Company is subject to normal market fluctuations and other risks inherent in investing in securities. There is no assurance that any appreciation in the value of the Ordinary Shares will occur or that the investment objectives of the Company will be achieved. The value of investments and the income derived therefrom may fall as well as rise and investors may not recoup the original amount invested in the Company.
The value of the Ordinary Shares and income derived from them (if any) can go down as well as up. Notwithstanding the existence of the share buyback powers described in Part IV of this Prospectus, there is no guarantee that the market price of the Ordinary Shares will fully reflect their underlying net asset value. In the event of a winding-up of the Company, Shareholders will rank behind any creditors of the Company and, therefore, any positive return for Shareholders will depend on the Company's assets being sufficient to meet the prior entitlements of any creditors.
Solely for the purposes of the product governance requirements contained within: (a) EU Directive 2014/65/EU on markets in financial instruments, as amended ("MiFID II"); (b) Articles 9 and 10 of Commission Delegated Directive (EU) 2017/593 supplementing MiFID II; and (c) local implementing measures (together, the "MiFID II Product Governance Requirements"), and disclaiming all and any liability, whether arising in tort, contract or otherwise, which any "manufacturer" (for the purposes of the MiFID II Product Governance Requirements) may otherwise have with respect thereto, the New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares have been subject to a product approval process, which has determined that such shares are: (i) compatible with an end target market of retail investors and investors who meet the criteria of professional clients and eligible counterparties, each as defined in MiFID II; and (ii) eligible for distribution through all distribution channels as are permitted by MiFID II (the "Target Market Assessment"). Notwithstanding the Target Market Assessment, it is expected that the New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares will only be marketed with respect to retail investors to professionallyadvised and financially sophisticated non-advised retail investors, and further distributors should note that: the price of the New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares may decline and investors could lose all or part of their investment; the New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares offer no guaranteed income and no capital protection; and an investment in the New Ordinary Shares and Ordinary Shares is compatible only with investors who do not need a guaranteed income or capital protection, who (either alone or in conjunction with an appropriate financial or other adviser) are capable of evaluating the merits and risks of such an investment and who have sufficient resources to be able to bear any losses that may result therefrom. The Target Market Assessment is without prejudice to the requirements of any contractual, legal or regulatory selling restrictions in relation to the Issue or the Placing Programme.
For the avoidance of doubt, the Target Market Assessment does not constitute: (a) an assessment of suitability or appropriateness for the purposes of MiFID II; or (b) a recommendation to any investor or group of investors to invest in, or purchase, or take any other action whatsoever with respect to the New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares.
Each distributor is responsible for undertaking its own target market assessment in respect of the New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares and determining appropriate distribution channels.
In accordance with the PRIIPs Regulation, a key information document in respect of the New Ordinary Shares to be issued under the Issue and the Ordinary Shares to be issued under the Placing Programme has been prepared and is available to investors at www.aquila-european-renewables-income-fund.com. If you are distributing the New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares, it is your responsibility to ensure that the relevant key information document is provided to any clients that are "retail clients".
The Company is the only manufacturer of the New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares for the purposes of the PRIIPs Regulation and neither the AIFM, Numis, Kempen & Co nor the Investment Adviser is a manufacturer for these purposes. Neither the AIFM, Numis, Kempen & Co nor the Investment Adviser makes any representations, express or implied, or accept any responsibility whatsoever for the contents of the key information documents prepared by the Company or accept any responsibility to update the contents of the key information document in accordance with the PRIIPs Regulation, to undertake any review processes in relation thereto or to provide such key information document to future distributors of New Ordinary Shares or Ordinary Shares. Each of the AIFM, Kempen & Co and Numis and their respective Affiliates accordingly disclaim all and any liability whether arising in tort or contract or otherwise which it or they might have in respect of the key information document prepared by the Company.
When an application is made to subscribe for shares in the Company, the Company, the Administrator and/ or the Registrar will collect data about the prospective Shareholder, such as the name of the Shareholder, their address, the number of shares they subscribe or wish to subscribe for, account details, and proof of identity, together with such other personal data as is required in connection with the administration of the prospective Shareholder's interest in the Company ("Personal Data"). This data will be held and processed by the Company (and any third party in the United Kingdom to whom it may delegate certain administrative functions in relation to the Company), the Administrator and/or the Registrar in accordance with applicable data protection legislation and regulatory requirements of the United Kingdom. It will be stored on the Company/the Administrator and/or the Registrar or other third party processor's computer systems and manually, and will be retained for as long as is necessary in order to administer the interests in the Company and for any period thereafter which is required in order for the Company to comply with its reporting obligations.
The Company is required by Data Protection Legislation to specify the purposes for which it will hold Personal Data. The Company, the Administrator and/or the Registrar (together with any third party, functionary, or agent appointment by the Company) will use and process such data for the following purposes:
• for or in connection with the holding of an interest in the Company, including processing Personal Data
in connection with credit and money laundering checks on the prospective Shareholder;
The legal basis for processing Personal Data for the purposes set out above, is the legitimate interests of the Company, the Administrator and/or the Registrar in carrying out the business of the Company and administering the interests in the Company and/or (in some cases) that the processing is necessary for compliance with a legal obligation to which the Company, Administrator and/or the Registrar is subject.
The Company is a data controller in respect of Personal Data and for the purpose of Data Protection Legislation. All prospective shareholders whose Personal Data has been submitted in connection with an application for an interest in the Company have a right to:
If you wish to exercise any of these rights, or wish to contact the Company, the Administrator and/or the Registrar about your Personal Data, you should submit a written application to the Administrator and/or the Registrar at their regulated address.
Where a third party provides Personal Data about a prospective Shareholder to the Company, the Administrator and/or the Registrar, the third party represents and warrants to the Company, the Administrator and/or the Registrar, that it has collected and transferred such data to the Company, the Administrator and/or the Registrar, in accordance with Data Protection Legislation.
The Company makes its investments through a group structure comprising one or more special purpose vehicles ("SPV"). References in this document to the Company making investments or being affected by certain events or circumstances include references to investments being made and held by an SPV or an SPV being affected by such events or circumstances.
This Prospectus does not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to subscribe for or buy shares in any jurisdiction in which such offer or solicitation is unlawful. Issue or circulation of this Prospectus may be prohibited in some countries.
The Ordinary Shares offered by this Prospectus may not be offered or sold directly or indirectly in or into the United States, or to or for the account or benefit of any U.S. Person (within the meaning of Regulation S).
Prospective investors should consider carefully (to the extent relevant to them) the notices to residents of various countries set out on pages 131 to 134 of this Prospectus.
The contents of this Prospectus or any other communications from the Company, the AIFM, the Investment Adviser, Numis, Kempen & Co and any of their respective affiliates, directors, officers, employees or agents are not to be construed as advice relating to legal, financial, taxation, investment or any other matter. Prospective investors should inform themselves as to:
Prospective investors must rely upon their own representatives, including their own legal advisers and accountants, as to legal, tax, investment or any other related matters concerning the Company and an investment therein.
The New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares are designed to be held over the long term and may not be suitable as short-term investments. There is no guarantee that any appreciation in the value of the Company's investments will occur or that the Company will achieve its distribution targets (which for the avoidance of doubt are targets only and not profit forecasts), and investors may not get back the full value of their investment. Any investment objectives of the Company are targets only and should not be treated as assurances or guarantees of performance.
It should be remembered that the price of the New Ordinary Shares or the Ordinary Shares, and the income from them, can go down as well as up.
All Shareholders are entitled to the benefit of, are bound by, and are deemed to have notice of, the provisions of the Articles which investors should review.
The Prospectus includes statements that are, or may be deemed to be, "forward-looking statements". These forward-looking statements can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology, including the terms "believes", "estimates", "anticipates", "forecasts", "projects", "expects", "intends", "may", "will" or "should" or, in each case, their negative or other variations or comparable terminology. These forwardlooking statements include all matters that are not historical facts. They appears in a number of places through this Prospectus and include statements regarding the intentions, beliefs or current expectations of the Company and the Directors concerning, amongst other things, the investment strategy, financing strategies, investment performance, results of operations, financial condition, prospects and dividend policies of the Company and the assets in which it will invest.
All forward-looking statements address matters that involve risks and uncertainties and are not guarantees of future performance. Accordingly, there are or will be important factors that could cause the Company's actual results of operations, performance or achievement or industry results to differ materially from those indicated in these statements. These factors include, but are not limited to, those described in the part of this Prospectus entitled "Risk Factors", which should be read in conjunction with the other cautionary statements that are included in this Prospectus. Any forward-looking statements in this Prospectus reflect the Company's current views with respect to future events and are subject to these and other risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to the Company's operations, results of operations, growth strategy and liquidity.
Given these uncertainties, prospective investors are cautioned not to place any undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.
These forward-looking statements apply only as at the date of this Prospectus. Subject to any obligations under the Listing Rules, the Disclosure and Transparency Rules and the Prospectus Regulation Rules, the Company undertakes no obligation publicly to update or review any forward-looking statement whether as a result of new information, future developments or otherwise. Prospective investors should specifically consider the factors identified in this Prospectus which could cause actual results to differ before making an investment decision. Nothing in this paragraph or in the preceding three paragraphs should be taken as limiting the working capital statement contained in paragraph 5 of Part X of this Prospectus.
The actual number of New Ordinary Shares to be issued pursuant to the Issue and the number of Ordinary Shares to be issued pursuant to the Placing Programme will be determined by the Company (in consultation with Numis, Kempen & Co and the Investment Adviser). In such event, the information in this Prospectus should be read in light of the actual number of New Ordinary Shares to be issued in the Issue and the number of Ordinary Shares to be issued pursuant to the Placing Programme.
The contents of the Company's website at www.aquila-european-renewables-income-fund.com do not form part of this Prospectus. Investors should base their decision to invest on the contents of this Prospectus alone and should consult their professional advisers prior to making an application to subscribe for New Ordinary Shares or the Ordinary Shares.
Information regarding markets, market size, market share, market position, growth rates and other industry data pertaining to the Company's business and the track record of the Investment Adviser contained in this Prospectus consists of estimates based on data and reports compiled by professional organisations and analysts, information made public by investment vehicles currently managed by the Investment Adviser or the Aquila Group, or data from other external sources and on the Company's, the Directors' and Investment Adviser's knowledge. Information regarding the macroeconomic environment has been compiled from publicly available sources. In many cases, there is no readily available external information (whether from trade associations, government bodies or other organisations) to validate market-related analysis and estimates, requiring the Company or the Investment Adviser to rely on internally developed estimates. The Company takes responsibility for compiling, extracting and reproducing market or other industry data from external sources, including third parties or industry or general publications, but none of the Company, the Investment Adviser, Kempen & Co or Numis has independently verified that data. None of the Company, the Investment Adviser, Kempen & Co or Numis gives any assurance as to the accuracy and completeness of, and takes no further responsibility for, such data. Similarly, while the Company believes its and the Investment Adviser's internal estimates to be reasonable, they have not been verified by any independent sources and the Company cannot give any assurance as to their accuracy.
Unless otherwise indicated, all references in this Prospectus to "GBP", "Sterling", "pounds sterling", "pound", "£", "pence" or "p" are to the lawful currency of the UK, and all references to "€" or "Euro" are to the lawful currency of the Eurozone countries.
Unless otherwise indicated, the latest practicable date for the inclusion of information in this Prospectus is at close of business on 16 September 2020.
Unless otherwise stated, statements made in this Prospectus are based on the law and practice currently in force in England and Wales.
A list of defined terms used in this Prospectus is set out at pages 135 to 142 of this Prospectus.
All references to times in this Prospectus are to London times, unless otherwise stated.
| Placing and Offer for Subscription open | 17 September 2020 |
|---|---|
| General Meeting | 10:00 a.m. on 6 October 2020 |
| Latest time and date for receipt of Application Forms and payment in full under the Offer for Subscription |
11:00 a.m. on 8 October 2020 |
| Latest time and date for receipt of Placing commitments | 12:00 p.m. on 8 October 2020 |
| Announcement of the results of the Issue | 9 October 2020 |
| Admission to the premium segment of the Official List and commencement of dealings on the London Stock Exchange |
13 October 2020 |
| CREST accounts credited | 13 October 2020 |
| Dispatch of definitive share certificates (where applicable) | Week commencing 19 October 2020 |
| Expected Placing Programme Timetable | |
| Placing Programme opens | 13 October 2020 |
| Publication of Issue Price in respect of each Subsequent Placing |
on, or as soon as practicable after, the announcement of each Subsequent Placing |
| Admission to the premium segment of the Official List and commencement of dealings on the London Stock Exchange |
08:00 a.m. on each day on which Ordinary Shares are issued pursuant to the Placing Programme |
| CREST accounts credited | as soon as practicable after the issue of Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Placing Programme |
| Dispatch of definitive share certificates (where applicable) | by no later than 14 business days after Admission of the relevant Ordinary Shares |
| Latest date for Ordinary Shares to be issued pursuant to the Placing Programme |
16 September 2021 |
The dates and times specified above and mentioned throughout this Prospectus are subject to change. In particular the Directors may, with the prior approval of Numis and Kempen & Co, postpone the closing time and date for the Placing and Offer for Subscription. In the event that such date is changed, the Company will notify investors who have applied for Ordinary Shares of changes to the timetable by the publication of an announcement through a Regulatory Information Service.
| Issue Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Issue Price per New Ordinary Share | €1.0375 |
| Further Issue Statistics on the basis that Gross Issue Proceeds are €150 million |
|
| Net Issue Proceeds | €147 million* |
| Number of New Ordinary Shares being issued | 144,578,313 |
| Further Issue Statistics on the basis that Gross Issue Proceeds are €200 million |
|
| Net Issue Proceeds | €196 million* |
| Number of Ordinary Shares being issued | 192,771,084 |
The Issue Price represents a premium of 5.2 per cent. to the Company's 30 June 2020 NAV and a discount of 3.9 per cent. to the Ordinary Share price as at close of business on 16 September 2020 (being the latest practicable date prior to the date of this document). For the avoidance of doubt, any New Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to the Issue will not be entitled to the yet to be declared, third interim dividend in respect of the year ending 31 December 2020.
The target size of the Issue is €150 million with the actual size of the Issue being subject to investor demand. The number of New Ordinary Shares to be issued pursuant to the Issue, and therefore the amount of the Gross Issue Proceeds, is not known at the date of this Prospectus but will be notified by the Company by the publication of an announcement through a Regulatory Information Service prior to Admission.
If commitments and applications are received for more than €150 million New Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Issue, the Directors reserve the right, in consultation with Numis and Kempen & Co, to increase the size of the Issue to €200 million. Any such increase will be notified by the Company by the publication of an announcement through a Regulatory Information Service. If the Gross Issue Proceeds are not such that the Net Issue Proceeds equal or exceed €5 million the Issue will not proceed.
* The costs and expenses of the Issue are estimated to amount to no more than 2 per cent. of the Gross Issue Proceeds. No fees or expenses in relation to the Issue will be charged to investors and the Company will bear these costs including any abort costs if the Issue does not proceed.
Maximum size of the Placing Programme 500 million Ordinary Shares Issue Price per Ordinary Share not less than the prevailing NAV per Ordinary Share at the time of issue plus a premium sufficient to cover the costs and expenses of such issue
__________
LEI of the Company 213800UKH1TZIC9ZRP41
The Ordinary Shares will be quoted and traded in both Euros and Sterling The ISIN and SEDOLs for the Ordinary Shares are set out below:
SEDOL BK6RLF6 BJMXQK1 Ticker AERI AERS
Euro Quote Sterling Quote ISIN GB00BK6RLF66 GB00BK6RLF66
| Directors (all non-executive) | Ian Nolan (Chair) David MacLellan Kenneth MacRitchie Patricia Rodrigues |
|---|---|
| all of | |
| st Floor 1 Senator House 85 Queen Victoria Street London EC4V 4AB |
|
| AIFM | International Fund Management Limited Sarnia House Le Truchot St Peter Port Guernsey GY1 1GR |
| Investment Adviser | Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH Valentinskamp 70 D-20355 Hamburg Germany |
| Administrator to the Company, Company Secretary |
PraxisIFM Fund Services (UK) Limited st Floor 1 Senator House 85 Queen Victoria Street London EC4M 4AB |
| Sponsor and Joint Bookrunner | Numis Securities Limited The London Stock Exchange Building 10 Paternoster Square London EC4M 7LT |
| Joint Bookrunner | Van Lanschot Kempen Wealth Management N.V Beethovenstraat 300 1077 WZ Amsterdam The Netherlands |
| Registrar and Receiving Agent | Computershare Investor Services PLC The Pavilions Bridgwater Road Bristol BS13 8AE |
| Auditors and Reporting Accountant | PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP 1 Embankment Place London WC2N 6RH |
| Solicitors to the Company as to English Law |
CMS Cameron McKenna Nabarro Olswang LLP Cannon Place 78 Cannon Street London EC4N 6AF |
Solicitors to the Sponsor and Joint Bookrunner as to English Law
Hogan Lovells International LLP Atlantic House Holborn Viaduct London EC1A 2FG
The Company is a Euro-denominated UK domiciled investment company investing in renewable energy technologies across continental Europe and the Republic of Ireland and providing a diversified revenue stream from energy sales. Since the IPO, the Company has built a portfolio of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments across a diversified geographical region with a mix of renewable energy technologies.
Subject to having sufficient distributable reserves to do so, the Company is targeting a minimum of 4.0 cents in relation to the financial year ending 31 December 2020 and 5.0 cents per Ordinary Share in respect of subsequent financial years, with the aim of increasing this dividend progressively over the medium term. To date, the Company has paid 3.0 cents in dividend payments to Shareholders, which is in line with the dividend policy set out above. In line with its dividend target for the year ending 31 December 2020, the Company expects to announce in early October 2020 a dividend of 1.25 cents in relation to the quarter ended 30 September 2020. It is expected that the record date for this third interim dividend will fall before Admission of any New Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to the Issue and therefore any such New Ordinary Shares will not be entitled to this third interim dividend in respect of the year ending 31 December 2020. The Company targets a total return of 6.0 per cent. to 7.5 per cent. (net of fees and expenses) over the long-term.2
The Investment Adviser will advise on potential renewable energy investments in line with the Investment Policy. The Investment Adviser is part of the Aquila Group. The Aquila Group is an experienced and long-term investor in essential, real asset investments. Founded in 2001 by Dr. Dieter Rentsch and Roman Rosslenbroich, the Aquila Group currently manages and/or advises approximately €11.1 billion for its clients worldwide (as at 30 June 2020). Last year Aquila entered into a strategic partnership with Daiwa Energy & Infrastructure.
The Aquila Group specialises in secular and sustainable trends in renewable energy, social housing, green logistics, infrastructure, timber and agriculture. Dedicated expert investment teams with entrepreneurial mindsets draw on their sector networks and experience to screen, develop, finance, manage and operate investments along the entire value chain. As this concept requires local management teams and a local presence, Aquila Capital operates operational teams in many jurisdictions that the Company has invested in. Aquila Capital has 14 investment offices in 12 countries. These comprehensive operational capabilities paired with more than 350 employees at group level, intensive asset management and a passion for detail ensure asset and product performance as well as the timely deployment of capital. The Aquila Group believes in stringent corporate governance. With its two AIFMs in Luxembourg and Germany, it is subject to the highest European regulatory standards.
The Investment Adviser has the ability to source assets from accounts, funds and finance vehicles managed or advised by the Aquila Group as well as from third parties. Following due diligence, the Investment Adviser will make a proposal to the AIFM about the suitability of a particular asset to form part of the Company's investment portfolio. The AIFM will consider any proposal, evaluate it against the Company's Investment Policy and make a recommendation to the Board. The Board will consider the recommendation and supporting materials received and make the final decision as to whether or not to acquire the relevant asset to form part of the investment portfolio.
| Project | Technology | Country | Capacity 4 |
Status | COD5 | Asset Life from COD3 |
Equipment Manufacturer |
Energy Offtaker 6 |
Ownership in Project |
Leverage7 | Acquisition date |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tesla | Wind energy |
Norway | 150 MW | Operational | 2013, 2018 |
25y | Nordex | PPA with utility/ Spot |
25.9%8 | 31.2% | July 2019 |
| Sagres | Hydro- | Portugal | 103MW 9 | Operational | 1951-2006 | n.a.10 | Various | FiT11 / |
18.0%6 | 44.7% | July 2019 |
2 These are targets only and not forecasts. There can be no assurance that these targets can or will be met and it should not be seen as an indication of the Company's expected or actual results or returns. Accordingly, investors should not place any reliance on these targets in deciding whether to invest in Ordinary Shares or assume that the Company will make any distributions at all.
3 The Group signed an agreement to acquire a portfolio of PV parks on 13 September 2020 and it is anticipated that the acquisition will be completed on or around October.
4 installed capacity at 100% ownership.
5 COD means Commissioning date.
8 Remaining shares are held by entities managed and/or advised by Aquila Capital.
6 Price hedging will be implemented when market exposure increases significantly.
7 Leverage drawn as a percent of investment fair value as at 30.06.2020, in total representing 30% of Gross Asset Value.
| power | Spot | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holmen II | Wind energy |
Denmark | 18 MW | Operational | 2018 | 25y | Vestas | FiP12/Spot | 100.0% | 43.9% | July 2019 |
| Olhava | Wind energy |
Finland | 35 MW | Operational | 2013-2015 | 27.5y | Vestas | FiT11 /Spot |
100.0% | 53.6% | September 2019 |
| Swindbaek I + II |
Wind energy |
Denmark | 32 MW | Operational | 2018 | 25y | Siemens | FiP12/Spot | 99.9% | 20.9% | December 2019 & March 2020 |
| The Rock | Wind energy |
Norway | 400 MW4 | Construction | 2021 | 30y | Nordex | PPA/Spot | 13.7% | 0.0%13 | June 2020 |
The Investment Adviser has identified an Enhanced Pipeline of opportunities which are considered suitable for the Company to invest in and which fulfil the Company's Investment Policy. The Investment Adviser has identified Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments that it considers would meet the Company's Investment Policy and otherwise be suitable for acquisition by the Company. The Enhanced Pipeline comprises 14 opportunities that are (i) held in Aquila Managed Funds (6 opportunities) or (ii) in negotiations (including some where the Investment Adviser is in exclusivity) with Aquila (8 opportunities).
The independent Board, chaired by Ian Nolan, former Chief Investment Officer of the UK Green Investment Bank and 3i PLC, will consider and approve the acquisition by the Company of proposed Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. The Board will supervise the AIFM, who will be responsible for making recommendations in relation to proposals put forward by the Investment Adviser.
The Company is targeting a raise of €150 million pursuant to the Issue to be invested in Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments that fall within the Company's Investment Policy. The Issue comprises a Placing and an Offer for Subscription. A Placing Programme will be constituted from Admission and will close on 16 September 2021 or at such earlier time as the maximum number of Ordinary Shares that may be issued under the Placing Programme have been subscribed. The target number of shares to be issued under the Issue is approximately 145 million New Ordinary Shares (with the ability to upsize to approximately 190 million New Ordinary Shares if commitments and applications exceed the target size) and the target number of Ordinary Shares to be issued under the Placing Programme is 500 million Ordinary Shares.
9 This investment is made up of 21 individual assets, which have an average concession life of 12 years.
10 This investment is made up of 21 individual assets, which have an average concession life of 12 years.
11 The feed in tariff is structured as a Contract for Difference (CfD).
12 Feed in premium is structured as a Contract for Difference (CfD) at the spot market price.
13 Maximum envisaged leverage throughout The Rock's construction and operations is estimated at 47%.
The Company confirms that the information extracted from third party sources in this Part II has been accurately reproduced and that, as far as the Company is aware and is able to ascertain from information published by those third parties, no facts have been omitted which would render the reproduced information inaccurate or misleading. Sources for the information set out in this Part II are set out underneath each relevant figure or table, as applicable, or in footnotes at the bottom of the page.
In 2009, the European Union adopted a policy of transition towards a low carbon society with the introduction of the Renewable Energy Directive (2009/28/EC) in which the EU set a target for renewable energy to comprise 20 per cent. of the EU's energy mix by 2020 (the "Renewable Energy Share" or "RES"). Despite slower growth in recent years, the EU has largely met its 2020 targets. The recent agreement on the revised Renewable Energy Directive (EU) 2018/2001, which increased the overall EU target for RES to 32 per cent. in 2030, is expected to further increase renewable energy investments in the EU and contribute to the long-term goal of 75 per cent. of the EU energy mix from renewable energy in 2050.


_____________

In the past, European nations stimulated investment in the renewable energy industry by introducing
government regulated tariffs and green certificates as an incentive to generate renewable energy, which subsequently contributed to a decrease in LCOE's. Figure 2 shows that the Offshore Wind sub-sector and PV sub-sector LCOE's have fallen by approximately 60 per cent. and 86 per cent. respectively.
Since 2010, the price for PV modules has fallen by 85 per cent., wind turbine prices decreased by 51 per cent. and battery packs declined by 85 per cent.. Auctions are expected to continue to drive competition across the value chain and thus decrease prices going forward.
Europe is expected to generate 87 per cent. of electricity from renewables by 2050 with wind and solar being the most prominent. It is expected that onshore wind will contribute approximately 80 per cent. of the wind electricity provided to the European grid. Hydropower is also seen as a key source of energy, providing around 14 per cent. of electricity for the period from 2018 to 2050. By 2030 it is expected that more than half of Europe's electricity shall be supplied by wind and solar. With respect to nuclear and fossil fuel, including oil, coal and natural gas, a decline in power generation from 67 per cent. in 2010 to at least 44 per cent. in 2030 is forecasted.
The growth in the renewables market is anticipated to drive investments in the sector of US\$2.2 trillion up to 2050. The development of installed power generation capacity by source from 2010 until 2030 is shown in Figure 3. In Figure 3, Irena distinguishes between two-forward-looking scenarios:
Figure 3: Installed power generation capacity by source in the EU-28 and the continuous expansion of RES until 2030 (GW, power generation capacity).

The Company is uniquely positioned to benefit from the longer-term global energy transition. Historically, the European Union has been at the forefront of global renewable energy deployment for over two decades. In addition, Europe is an attractive destination for renewables investors as the region offers diversification, giving access to a broad spectrum of risk profiles across a wide pool of assets. European leaders continue to support the transition to a low carbon society through an increase of their country's RES, which is targeting 32 per cent. RES of final energy consumption by 2030 – this will require a substantial increase in power generation capacity. Climate change and the pressing need for a global energy transition is expected to gain even further momentum as a result of COVID-19. In July 2020, 27 European Union leaders agreed on a EUR 750 billion stimulus package (2021 to 2023) in light of COVID-19. A large proportion of the stimulus package is targeting green and renewable industries.
As governments across Europe increasingly focus on market-based, sustainable subsidy schemes to limit the impact on consumer bills (as shown in Figure 4), two trends have become apparent. First, projects need to be economically viable without feed-in tariffs and thus need to be located in areas characterized by a strong meteorological resource. The best locations for producing the highest levels of solar irradiation and wind density can be seen in Figures 5 and 6. While southern Spain and Portugal have one of the highest solar irradiations, wind density is highest at the coastal regions. Second, in order to mitigate the market risk, investors have become increasingly focused on securing long-term fixed-price power purchase agreements. The recent significant growth in the EMEA PPA market is displayed in Figures 8 and 9. Increasing numbers of PPAs and higher industry diversification of PPA offtakers has also resulted in higher liquidity in the market. Additionally, PPAs have become more popular amongst corporates across Europe, with corporate PPAs increasing from 500 MW in 2015 to 2,500 MW in 2019.


Source: WindEurope, 2017


_Source: Global Wind Atlas, 2020__________

Source: Global Solar Atlas, 2020
______________

Source: Atlas Climático Ibérico, 2011 Figure 8: EMEA Corporate PPAs by offtaker type (GW)

Source: Bloomberg New Energy Finance, 2020

Source: RE-Source, 2020, originally from WindEurope, 2020
Figures 8 and 9 highlight the dramatic increase in capacity covered by PPAs over the last few years, as well as an increase in the number of offtakers and participating countries. In 2015 only four countries participated in PPAs, including Sweden, the UK, the Netherlands and Spain. In 2019, the number of participating countries more than tripled, reflecting further development and diversification of the PPA market.
Target markets in the Nordics

As shown in the figure above, the generation mix in Northern Europe14is not dependent on fossil fuels as an energy source. Noticeably hydropower and onshore wind are the strongest contributing technologies and continue to grow as forecasted by Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
14 Northern Europe includes Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia.
Norway supports the development of renewable energy through an electricity certificate or El-cert, a quotabased green certificate scheme. The quota system creates the demand for El-certs and obliges utilities and certain electricity consumers to annually acquire renewable energy certificates in proportion to their electricity sales and their consumption by a specific date. Although the sale of El-certs contributed to the overall revenues of a renewable plant operator, the majority of revenues stem from the sale of electricity. Consequently, investors typically seek to mitigate market price risks with PPAs.
Norway is already one of the world's largest energy exporters and advocators of climate change mitigation and environmental sustainability. The country actively works to increase its cross-border connections to realise the full potential of its exports, particularly hydropower in order to balance variations in demand and supply. Policy goals include reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 40 per cent. by 2030 (from the 1990 levels) and becoming a low carbon society by 2050.
Sweden has signed up for the same support scheme in operation in Norway. In addition, Sweden has also implemented a reduced real estate tax for wind energy assets. Although the sale of El-certs contributes to the overall revenues of a renewable plant operators like in Norway, the majority of revenues originates from the sale of electricity. Consequently, investors typically seek to mitigate market price risks with PPAs.
Sweden aims to be a net-zero carbon economy by 2045. The introduction of the world's highest carbon taxation, which was one of the first of its kind, demonstrates the country's strong policy support towards the energy transition to renewable energy. Further ambitious targets in its latest Energy Agreement and Climate Framework include 100 per cent. renewable electricity generation by 2040 and the reduction of transport emissions by 70 per cent. by 2030.
Finland promotes renewable energy through the use of subsidies, a premium tariff and tenders. Subsidies consist of aid for investment and research projects. The premium tariff scheme is scheduled to be phased out by 2020 and to be replaced with the tender scheme, which promotes, amongst others, wind and solar energy. The tender scheme offers up to 1.4 TWh annually with a base price of €30 per MWh and a capped premium at €53.5 per MWh. Besides the subsidy scheme, a PPA market has evolved. In September 2018, Google contracted its first European subsidy free renewable energy project in Finland.
Finland has aligned its climate and energy policies with the rest of Europe aiming to achieve climate neutrality by 2050. By 2030 the country aims to cut oil consumption in half and achieve 30 per cent. of renewables in the transportation industry.
In Denmark, renewable energy is mainly promoted by a premium tariff through auctions and net-metering. In 2017, Denmark announced an auction scheme where solar PV projects and wind projects would compete in technology neutral auctions worth 1 billion kroner (€134 million) for the period 2018-2019, and a further 4.2 billion kroner (€560 million) for the period between 2020-2024. The first round was closed at the end of 2018. Alongside the subsidy scheme, a PPA market is also becoming increasingly active.
Denmark's share of wind in both total primary energy consumption and electricity is already the highest of any member country of the International Energy Agency. By 2030 the country aims for renewables to cover more than 50 per cent. of its total energy consumption and by 2050 to be independent of fossil fuels altogether.


The data for Germany reveals a substantial transformation from a coal, gas and nuclear powered economy to an energy mix dominated by onshore and offshore wind within the forecasted period.
Germany promotes renewably energy predominantly through a market premium scheme via competitive tenders, except for small power plants producing up to 100 kW which are still eligible for a feed-in tariff. Investments in renewable energy are also supported by KfW-Programmes that provide access to low interest rate loans.
Germany plans to transform its energy system into a more efficient one, supplied predominantly by renewable energy sources by 2050. The "Energiewende" plan includes the phase-out of nuclear power by 2022 and coal fired generation energy by 2038. To achieve this, half of the total electricity supply shall come from renewable energy sources by 2030.

Generation mix data for the Iberian Peninsula highlights a strong expected decline in fossil fuels in the next 15 years as forecasted by Bloomberg New Energy Finance. This capacity is expected to be replaced by strong growth in onshore wind as well as small-scale PV and to a lesser extent hydropower.
A new support scheme, the Régimen Retributivo Específicowas established in 2014 replaced the former support scheme, the Régimen Especial, which was suspended at the beginning of 2012. Three competitive auctions have already been held under the new support scheme. The last auction awarded 5GW of capacity. All winning bids in respect of the third auction hit the cap and only receive remuneration if power prices fall below €25 per MWh (annual average). Alongside the successful auctions, the market for PPAs is also becoming increasingly active.
Spain's capacities in renewables and liquified natural gas are understood to be the highest in the EU. The build out of cross border connections is expected to unlock the country's large potential as an energy exporter.
The country shares the Iberian electricity trading market (MIBEL) with Spain, accessing its economic benefits whilst operating under different regulation. Electricity from renewable energy sources is mainly promoted by a feed-in tariff for plants which are registered before 7 November 2012. From that point in time, the Portuguese power market has so far been driven by private market initiatives namely by PPAs to reduce market price exposure. In 2019, the first guaranteed remuneration system was held with capacity allocations through public tenders. With respect to small production installations and self-consumption a remuneration scheme came into force in January 2015.
Portugal's national energy and climate plan envisages 80 per cent. of energy consumption to be sourced from renewable electricity by 2030. Today the country is already a world leader at integrating generation from wind and solar PV into their grid system. By 2050 Portugal aspires to have a carbon neutral economy.
Greece is currently developing its national energy and climate plan for 2030 with the goal to create a more balanced energy mix contributing to increased energy security. Compared to many other countries from a geological and geographical point of view, Greece is naturally well suited to produce renewable energy given it has jurisdiction to over more than 2,000 islands and offers year-round warm climate. The Cretan interconnection, the largest electricity grid infrastructure project ever undertaken in Greece, is expected to be commissioned in 2022.
Where information contained in this Part III has been sourced from a third party, the Company confirms that such information has been accurately reproduced and the source identified and, so far as the Company is aware and is able to ascertain from the information published by that third party, no facts have been omitted which would render the reproduced information inaccurate or misleading.
As at the date of this document, the current Portfolio comprises six Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments including five onshore wind parks located in the Nordic region (Norway, Denmark and Finland) and a portfolio of 21 hydropower plants located in Portugal. All the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments are currently operational except for the newly acquired Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment, The Rock, which is expected to become operational at the end of 2021. A brief overview of the Portfolio is set out below:15
| Total | Ownership stake in |
Allocation in % of Fair |
Commissioning | Acquisition | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Project | Technology | Country | MW16 | Project | Value | date | date | Leverage17 |
| Tesla | Wind energy | Norway | 150 | 25.9%18 | 16.4% | 2013, 2018 | July 2019 | 31.2% |
| Sagres | Hydropower | Portugal | 103 | 17.99%18 | 10.9% | 1951-2006 | July 2019 | 44.7% |
| Holmen II | Wind energy | Denmark | 18 | 100.0% | 15.6% | 2018 | July 2019 | 43.9% |
| Olhava | Wind energy | Finland | 35 | 100.0% | 17.1% | 2013-2015 | September 2019 |
53.6% |
| Svindbaek I & II |
Wind energy | Denmark | 32 | 99.8% | 25.4% | 2018 | December 2019 & March 2020 |
20.9% |
| The Rock | Wind energy | Norway | 400 | 13.7%18 | 14.6% | 2021 | June 2020 | 0.0% 19 |
A summary of the Portfolio's technology, turbines (including the manufacturer) and PPA/tariff arrangements is shown below:
| Project | Technology | Turbines/ Other |
Manufacturer | PPA / Tariff arrangement20 | PPA / Tariff arrangement expiry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tesla | Wind energy | 44 x N100 and N90 (2.5 MW each) and 11 x N117 wind turbines (3.6 MW each) |
Nordex | PPA with utility / Spot - Statkraft PPA covers 70% of the expected P50 production for the next 9 years. |
2028 |
| Sagres | Hydropower | N/A | Various | FiT21/ Spot - 75% of production covered by long term feed-in tariff |
Gradually expires for the individual power plants |
| Holmen II | Wind energy | 18 | Vestas | FiP22 / Spot - Danish premium tariff for a fixed volume of production |
2025 |
| Olhava | Wind energy | 8 x V112-3.0 MW and 3 x V126-3.3 MW |
Vestas | FiT21/ Spot - Finnish feed-in tariff |
2024/2025 |
| Svindbaek I & II |
Wind energy | 7 SWT-3.2-101 |
Siemens Gamesa | FiP22/ Spot - Danish Premium tariff (feed-in premium structed as a Contract for Difference) for a fixed volume of |
2028 |
15 The Group signed an agreement to acquire a portfolio of PV parks, Benfica III as described below, on 13 September 2020 and it is expected that the acquisition will be completed on or around October 2020.
16 Installed capacity at 100% ownership
18 Remaining shares are held by Aquila Managed Funds
17 Leverage drawn as a percent of investment fair value as at 30.06.2020, in total representing 30% of Gross Asset Value.
19 Maximum envisaged leverage throughout The Rock's construction and operations is estimated at 47.%
20 Price hedging will be implemented when market exposure increases significantly
21 The feed-in tariff is structured as a Contract for Difference (CfD).
22 Feed-in premium is structured as a Contract for Difference (CfD) at the spot market price.
| Project | Technology | Turbines/ Other |
Manufacturer | PPA / Tariff arrangement20 | PPA / Tariff arrangement expiry |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| production. Remaining tenor of FiT/CfD is 9 years |
|||||
| The Rock | Wind energy | 72 turbines | Nordex | PPA / Spot | 2036 |
The current portfolio was constructed to provide a high degree of contracted revenues and stable cash flows. It features a balanced mix of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments benefiting from contracted electricity sales price through government regulated feed-in-premiums/tariffs and fixed price PPAs which provides diversification in terms of revenue streams and counterparties. Approximately 70 per cent. of the present value of the Group's forecast revenue over the next 5 years is contracted, which provides visibility on expected revenues. Contract counterparties include high credit rating sovereign states and corporates.

Tesla is an operational onshore wind farm located in Norway ("Tesla"). Tesla was commissioned in 2013 and 2018 and is expected to have an operating life of 25 years. The Group acquired approximately 26 per cent. interest in Tesla in July 2019. Tesla has a total capacity of 150 MW, comprised of 55 Nordex wind turbines. 70 per cent. of Tesla's expected P50 production is covered by a PPA which has a remaining term of nine years.
Sagres is an operational small scale hydropower plants project located in Portugal ("Sagres") which was commissioned between 1951 and 2006 and has an expected remaining life span of 12 years. The Group acquired a 17.99 per cent. interest in Sagres in July 2019. Sagres has a total capacity of 103 MW, comprised of 21 operational small-scale hydropower plants. Approximately 75 per cent. of Sagres' production is covered by a long-term feed-in tariff which gradually expires for the individual power plants.
Holmen II is an operational onshore wind farm located in Denmark ("Holmen II") which was commissioned in 2018 and is expected to have an operating life of 25 years. The Group acquired a 100 per cent. interest in Holmen II in July 2019. Holmen II has a total capacity of 18 MW, comprised of installed Vestas turbines and yields a capacity factor of 43 per cent.. Holmen II operates on a Danish premium tariff for a fixed volume of production until 2025.
Olhava is an operational onshore wind farm located in Finland ("Olhava") which was commissioned in 2015 and is expected to have an operating life of 27.5 years. The Group acquired a 100 per cent. interest in Olhava in September 2019. Olhava has a total capacity of 35 MW, comprised of 8 Vestas V112-3.0MW turbines and 3 Vestas V126-3.3MW turbines. Olhava qualifies for the Finnish feed-in tariff and is eligible for guarantees of origin certificates.
Svindbaek I & II is an operational onshore wind farm located in Denmark ("Svindbaek I & II") which was commissioned in 2018 and is expected to have an operating life of 25 years. The Group acquired a 100 per cent. interest in Svindbaek I (22.4 MW) in December 2019 and a 99.7 per cent. interest in Svindbaek II (9.6 MW) in March 2020 respectively. Svindbaek I & II have a total capacity of 32 MW, comprised of Siemens Gamesa SWT- 3.2- 101 turbines. Svindbaek I & II benefit from a Danish premium tariff (feed-in premium structured as a contract for difference) for a fixed volume of production, which is expected to last for another 8 years.
The Rock is an onshore wind farm project in construction located in Norway ("The Rock") which began construction in 2019 and is due to be commissioned from the end of 2021. The Rock is expected to have an operating life of 30 years. The Group acquired a 13.7 per cent. interest in The Rock in June 2020. The Rock is expected to have a total capacity of 400 MW and will comprise of 72 Nordex turbines. It is expected that in the first year of operation, approximately 91 per cent. of production from The Rock will be hedged by a PPA and thereafter for a period of 14 years, approximately 70 per cent. shall be covered by a PPA.
In June 2020, the Norwegian Parliament requested the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy (the "MPE") to review previously granted wind farm facility licences. The Rock facility licence is one of the licences that is being reviewed. One facility licence for another project has already been reviewed and its validity has been confirmed. The Company expects the MPE to conclude the review of The Rock in the near term and based on information received by The Rock, it sees no reason why the licence would be found to be invalid. In addition to the review, the MPE must approve the MTA plan (detailed project execution plan) for The Rock which is also expected in the near term. The Rock has also received a claim from local stakeholders for an interim injunction to stop the project development alleging, amongst other things, that the wind farm facility licence was not validly issued and that the licence conditions were not satisfied. That claim is to be heard before the court in Norway in September 2020. The Company has been informed and believes that the risk for a negative result in the interim injunction case is low. However, if the claimants are successful, then construction on the site may cease and whilst The Rock would seek to appeal any such decision, it would delay the construction of the wind farm and the deadline for commercial operation included in the facility licence would need to be extended. An extension of the commercial operation date under the facility agreement may also be needed beyond December 2021. Should such matters arise, the Company is confident that such extensions will be granted. In the meantime, Eolus, the developer, continues with construction on site of The Rock.

A breakdown of the Group's deployment profile since IPO is set out below:
A breakdown of the valuations of each Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment in the Group's portfolio
as at 31 December 2019 and as at June 2020 are set out below:
| Project | Valuation as at 31 December 2019 (€ million) |
Valuation as at 30 June 2020 (€ million) |
|---|---|---|
| Tesla | 28.0 | 24.4 |
| Sagres | 17.1 | 16.3 |
| Holmen II | 24.3 | 23.3 |
| Olhava | 25.6 | 25.4 |
| Svindbaek I & II | 24.423 | 37.9 24 |
| The Rock | N/A* | 21.7 |
| Other | (0.7) | (2.3) |
| Total: | 118.7 | 146.8 |
Source: Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH
* The Rock was acquired after 31 December 2019.
The total value as at 31 December 2019 in the table above has been taken from the Annual Report and is audited. The total value as at 30 June 2020 has been taken from the Interim Results in the table above and is unaudited.
In addition, on 13 September 2020, the Group entered into a share purchase agreement to acquire a 100 per cent. interest in Benfica III, which is a portfolio of three operational solar parks in Portugal, for approximately €16.1 million. Benfica III was commissioned in 2017 in respect of 4.13 MWp and in 2020 in respect of 15.52 MWp and is expected to have an operating life of 30 years. Benfica III has a total capacity of 19.65 MWp and utilises a fixed-tilt ground mounted structure. The share purchase agreement is subject to conditions precedent, including that each project has a PPA and in respect of two of the PPAs, covers at least 50 per cent. of production volumes over five years. The acquisition is expected to complete in October 2020.
As at 30 June 2020, across the Portfolio there was approximately €81.9 million of non-recourse, project debt, equivalent to approximately 30 per cent. of the Gross Asset Value of the Group. The majority of leverage is fully amortising and has been structured to account for each Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment's seasonal production profile. The debt arrangements sit at SPV level and there is currently no debt at either the Company or Tesseract Holdings level.
The below table sets out the operational performance of the Portfolio as at 30 June 2020:
| Budget (GWh) | Actual (GWh) | Variance (%) | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year Overview | ||||
| Since ETD | 542.8 | 548.6 | 1.1 | |
| Project breakdown | ||||
| Tesla | 164.9 | 161.3 | (2.2) | |
| Sagres | 153.4 | 162.6 | 6.0 | |
| Olhava | 94.2 | 97.3 | 3.3 | |
| Holmen II | 103.4 | 97.0 | (6.2) | |
| Svindbaek I & II | 26.9 | 30.4 | 12.9 | |
| The Rock | N/A | N/A | N/A |
Since IPO, the portfolio has benefitted from geographic diversification which assists in mitigating monthly variances in weather. This benefit is expected to materialise further as the portfolio expands and other technologies are added (e.g. solar).
23 this figure does not include the Svindbaek II asset which was acquired in March 2020
24 this figure includes the Svindbaek II asset which was acquired in March 2020
The operating and financial review included in each of the Annual Report and the Interim Results are incorporated by reference as set out in Part XII of this Prospectus.
The Investment Adviser has identified a number of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments that, as at the date of this document, are either held in Aquila Managed Funds or are pending targets for acquisition by the Aquila investment team. The Investment Adviser considers that these opportunities would meet the Company's Investment Policy and therefore would potentially be suitable for acquisition by the Company.
Investors should note that no assets from the Enhanced Pipeline have been contracted to be acquired by the Company, there are no binding commitments or agreements to acquire any of these assets and the Company does not have a right of first refusal over any of the assets in the Enhanced Pipeline. The Investment Adviser is under no obligation to make the assets in the Enhanced Pipeline available to the Company and will apply its Allocation Policy in respect of the allocation of assets among Aquila Managed Funds. Therefore, there can be no assurance that any of these investments will remain available for purchase after Admission or, if available, at what price (if a price can be agreed at all) the investments can be acquired by the Company. The assets in the Enhanced Pipeline are indicative of the type and size of investment that may be made by the Company. To the extent assets in the Enhanced Pipeline remain available for investment by the Company following Admission, the Investment Adviser will advise the AIFM, who may recommend to the Board that the Company acquire one or more such assets. Any decision to acquire any assets within the Enhanced Pipeline is a matter reserved for the Board and no decision will be taken until after Admission. Investments not comprised in the Enhanced Portfolio may also become available. The individual holdings within the Portfolio, may therefore be substantially different to the Enhanced Pipeline shown below.
The Enhanced Pipeline comprises assets that are (i) held in Aquila Managed Funds and, (ii) under negotiations (including some on exclusive terms) to be acquired by Aquila Managed Funds (including, for these purposes, the Company). At all times, the Investment Advisor will maintain a balanced portfolio, in line with the Company's investment objective and policy.
| Asset | Location | Commissioning | Asset Type | Technology | Capacity | Remuneration | Full-service operations and maintenance (years) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NOR WIND I | Norway | 2021 | Onshore Wind |
Nordex N149/5.X | 400 MW | PPA | 25 |
| ESP SOLAR I | Spain | 2021 | Solar PV | Jinko Solar modules JKM325PP-72-V; Jinko Solar modules CS3W-400P |
143 MWp |
PPA | 5 |
| ESP SOLAR II | Spain | 2021 | Solar PV | Canadian Solar CS3W-410P – pv polycrystalline PERC modules rated at 410 Wp |
50 MWp | PPA | 5 |
| FIN WIND I | Finland | 2021 | Onshore Wind |
Nordex N149-4,8 MW |
43 MW | PPA | 30 |
| PRT SOLAR I | Portugal | 2019 | Solar PV | Suntech Superpoly STP285-20/Wfw (285 Wp) |
70 MWp | PPA | 10 |
| PRT SOLAR II | Portugal | 2019 | Solar PV | Suntech Superpoly STP285-20/Wfw (285 Wp) |
62 MWp | PPA | 10 |
Target assets held in Aquila Managed Funds include:
Target assets under negotiation include:
| Asset | Location | Commissioning | Asset Type | Technology | Capacity | Remuneration | Full-service operations and maintenance (years) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GRE WIND I | Greece | Mostly operating | Wind | undisclosed | 255 MW | FiT + FiP | TBD |
| PRT HYDRO I | Portugal | Operating | Hydro | undisclosed | 33 MW | PPA | TBD |
| GRE WIND II | Greece | 2020 | Wind | undisclosed | 82 MW | FiT + FiP | TBD |
| PRT WIND I | Portugal | 2009-2022 | Wind | undisclosed | 39 MW | FiT | TBD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ESP HYDRO I | Spain | various | Hydro | undisclosed | 85 MW | FiP + PPA | TBD |
| SWE WIND I | Sweden | 2020 | Wind | undisclosed | 71 MW | PPA | TBD |
| SWE WIND II | Sweden | 2023 | Wind | undisclosed | 70 MW | PPA | TBD |
| SWE HYDRO I |
Sweden | Operating | Hydro | undisclosed | 26 MW | PPA | TBD |
The charts below illustrate the Company's current and target breakdown of technology based on the fair values of the investments, contracted forecast revenues for the next 5 years (discounted with the average discount rate as of 30 June 2020) and construction projects as a percent of the sum of all fair values as at 30 June 2020. Whilst the Company's discounted hedged revenue for the next 5 years is in line with target, its exposure to solar PV and hydropower is below. The Company seeks to increase its solar PV and hydropower investments in the near-to-medium term to align with the technology target. The Company is restricted to invest no more than 30 per cent. of GAV in construction/development projects and may increase its exposure to construction projects within the noted tolerance.


Source: Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH
The graph below demonstrates an indicative cashflow profile of the Company's current investments plus selected assets from the Enhanced Pipeline. The data points in this chart are based on a number of assumptions, including the possible mix of assets in the portfolio and therefore should not be taken as a forecast, guarantee or indication of the Company's future returns. Investors should not place any reliance on the data in deciding whether to invest in New Ordinary Shares or Ordinary Shares.
25 The indicative cashflow, revenue and sensitivity information set out above has been calculated on the basis of a number of assumptions and inputs, including information provided by the Aquila Group relating to a hypothetical selection of assets from the Enhanced Pipeline. In particular, the data regarding revenues and cashflows assume no changes in the Company's portfolio from the point at which the Net Issue Proceeds are fully invested. There can be no assurance about the cashflows, revenues and sensitivities of the assets in which the Company ultimately invests and the data above should not be seen as an indication of the Company's expected or actual results or returns. Accordingly, investors should not place any reliance on this data in deciding whether to invest in New Ordinary Shares or Ordinary Shares.

_____________________
The chart below illustrates the sensitivities of the target returns to certain factors discussed above. The data points in this chart are based on a number of assumptions, including the possible mix of assets in the portfolio and therefore should not be taken as a forecast, guarantee or indication of the Company's future returns. Investors should not place any reliance on the data in deciding whether to invest in New Ordinary Shares or Ordinary Shares.

Source: Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH
The Company is a public limited company incorporated in England and Wales with company number 11932433 and whose registered address is at 1st Floor, Senator House, 85 Queen Victoria Street, London, United Kingdom, EC4V 4AB. The Company is registered as an investment company under section 833 of the Companies Act and an investment trust under section 1158 CTA. The Company has been established as a closed-ended investment company with an indefinite life.
The Company has an independent board of non-executive directors and is managed on a day-to- day basis by the AIFM, as advised by the Investment Adviser. Further details of the governance and management of the Company are set out in Part V of this Prospectus.
The Company has a wholly owned subsidiary, Tesseract Holdings Limited ("Tesseract Holdings"). Tesseract Holdings holds the existing Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments through a number of SPVs.

The Company seeks to generate stable returns, principally in the form of income distributions by investing in a diversified portfolio of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. The Company invests predominantly in operating renewable energy assets across continental Europe and the Republic of Ireland although it may invest in a limited number of assets in construction/development. Assets which are expected to generate renewable energy output for at least 25 years from their relevant commercial operation date will be targeted. The capital value of the investment portfolio will be supplemented and supported through reinvestment of excess cash flow, asset management initiatives and the prudent use of portfolio leverage.
Subject to having sufficient distributable reserves to do so, the Company is targeting dividends as follows:
Distributions on the Ordinary Shares are expected to be paid quarterly, normally in respect of the three months to 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and 31 December, and are expected to be made by way of interim dividends to be declared in May, August, November and February.
The Company set a target dividend of 1.5 cents per Ordinary Share in relation to the period ended 31 December 2019. The Company announced its first dividend of 0.75 cents per Ordinary Share in November 2019 and a further 0.75 cents per Ordinary Share in February 2020, in respect of the quarterly periods to September and December 2019 respectively. On 12 May 2020, the Company announced a dividend of 0.75 cents per Ordinary Shares in relation to the quarter ended 31 March 2020. On 5 August 2020, the Company announced a dividend of 0.75 cents in relation to the quarter ended 30 June 2020 which was paid on 14 September 2020. In line with its dividend target for the year ending 31 December 2020 the Company expects to announce in early October 2020 a dividend of 1.25 cents in relation to the quarter ended 30 September 2020. It is expected that the record date for this third interim dividend will fall before Admission of any New Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to the Issue and therefore any such New Ordinary Shares will not be entitled to this third interim dividend in respect of the year ending 31 December 2020.
The Company targets a total return of 6.0 per cent. to 7.5 per cent. (net of fees and expenses) over the long-term.28
Asset returns are calculated based on assumptions regarding, inter alia, power prices, production, operation and maintenance costs, discount rates, asset life and inflation.
The Directors believe that an investment in the Company offers the following characteristics:
Depth of resource and expertise for execution and asset management
• The Investment Adviser has identified a pipeline of renewable energy assets for potential acquisition by the Company.
26 These are targets only and not profit forecasts. There can be no assurance that these targets can or will be met and they should not be seen as an indication of the Company's expected or actual results or returns. Accordingly, investors should not place any reliance on these targets in deciding whether to invest in Ordinary Shares or assume that the Company will make any distributions at all.
27 This is a target only and not a profit forecast. There can be no assurance that these targets can or will be met and they should not be seen as an indication of the Company's expected or actual results or returns. Accordingly, investors should not place any reliance on these targets in deciding whether to invest in Ordinary Shares or assume that the Company will make any distributions at all.
28 These are targets only and not forecasts. There can be no assurance that these targets can or will be met and it should not be seen as an indication of the Company's expected or actual results or returns. Accordingly, investors should not place any reliance on these targets in deciding whether to invest in Ordinary Shares or assume that the Company will make any distributions at all.
The Directors therefore have confidence that the Net Issue Proceeds can be deployed to acquire suitable assets within six to twelve months of Admission.
The Board comprises individuals, all of whom are independent of Aquila, from relevant and complementary backgrounds offering experience in the management of listed funds, as well as in the renewables and infrastructure sectors, from both a public policy and a commercial perspective.
The Company has appointed International Fund Management Limited ("IFM") as its 'Alternative Investment Fund Manager' to provide portfolio and risk management services. IFM is part of the PraxisIFM Group, one of the largest independent financial services groups based on the Channel Islands and listed on The International Stock Exchange.
Further information on the Board, the AIFM and the Investment Adviser is set out in Part V of this Prospectus.
The Company will seek to achieve its investment objective set out above, predominantly through investment in Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments in continental Europe and the Republic of Ireland comprising (i) wind, photovoltaic and hydropower plants that generate electricity through the transformation of the energy of the wind, the sunlight and running water as naturally replenished resources, and (ii) non-generation renewable energy related infrastructure associated with the storage (such as batteries) and transmission (such as distribution grids and transmission lines) of renewable energy, in each case either already operating or in construction/development ("Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments").
The Company will acquire a mix of controlling and non-controlling interests in Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments and may use a range of investment instruments in the pursuit of its investment objective, including but not limited to equity, mezzanine or debt investments.
In circumstances where the Company does not hold a controlling interest in the relevant investment, the Company will seek, through contractual and other arrangements, to, inter alia, ensure that the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment is operated and managed in a manner that is consistent with the Company's Investment Policy, including any borrowing restrictions.
The Company aims to achieve diversification principally through investing in a range of portfolio assets across a number of distinct geographies and a mix of the wind, solar and hydropower technologies. The Company will observe the following investment restrictions when making investments:
transmission (such as distribution grids and transmission lines) of renewable energy;
Compliance with the above restrictions will be measured at the time of investment and non-compliance resulting from changes in the price or value of assets following investment will not be considered as a breach of the investment restrictions.
The Company holds and will hold its investments through one or more SPVs and the investment restrictions will be applied on a look-through basis.
Although not forming part of the investment restrictions or the Investment Policy, where Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments benefit from a PPA, the Company will take reasonable steps to avoid concentration with a single counterparty and intends that no more than 25 per cent. of income revenue will be derived from a single offtaker.
The Company complies with the investment restrictions set out below and will continue to do so for so long as they remain a requirement of the FCA:
The Directors do not currently intend to propose any material changes to the Company's investment policy. As required by the Listing Rules, any material changes to the investment policy of the Company will be made only with the approval of Shareholders.
The Gross Issue Proceeds will be utilised in accordance with the Company's Investment Policy to acquire suitable Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, to meet the costs and expenses of the Issue and for working capital purposes. The Company expects the Investment Adviser to advise the AIFM, which will make recommendations to the Board, such as to enable deployment of the Net Issue Proceeds in renewable energy investments within a period of six to twelve months after Admission (subject to market conditions). The exact composition of the fully invested portfolio and the identity of specific investments will depend on market conditions and the continued availability of investments which satisfy the Company's Investment Policy. The Company will invest in a mixture of wind, solar and hydropower technologies, and may at times be more heavily weighted towards one than others depending on market conditions.
The Investment Adviser has identified a number renewable energy infrastructure investment opportunities that it considers would meet the Company's Investment Policy and otherwise be potentially suitable for acquisition by the Company.
Investors should note that no opportunities from the Enhanced Pipeline have been contracted to be acquired by the Company, nor does the Company have a right of first refusal over the opportunities in the Enhanced Pipeline. The Investment Adviser is under no obligation to make the opportunities in the Enhanced Pipeline available to the Company and will apply its Allocation Policy in respect of the allocation of opportunities among Aquila Managed Funds. The opportunities in the Enhanced Pipeline are indicative of the type and size of investment that may be made by the Company. To the extent opportunities in the Enhanced Pipeline are available for investment by the Company following Admission, the Investment Adviser will advise the AIFM, which will, following its own evaluation of the Investment Adviser's advice recommend to the Board that the Company acquire one or more investments if it considers it appropriate to do so.
Further details of the assets in the Enhanced Pipeline are set out in Part III of this Prospectus.
Potential investments will be sourced from both Aquila Managed Funds and third parties in the wider market. For the avoidance of doubt, no member of the Aquila Group or its current employees holds or shall hold any direct equity in the project vehicles which hold the underlying assets or their holding companies, or direct equity other than in certain circumstances, a 1 to 2 per cent. shareholding in certain of the Aquila Managed Funds representing "skin in the game". As a consequence, these project vehicles are not deemed to be related parties of the Company under the Listing Rules and purchases from them will not be treated as related party transactions.
The Investment Adviser proposes potential Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments to the AIFM, which review such recommendations and the supporting papers and, in turn, make recommendations to the Board. All decisions regarding the acquisition of new investments, making of debt investments and the disposal of existing investments are made by the Directors, all of whom are independent of the Aquila Group and the AIFM.
The Investment Adviser reports to the AIFM after a letter of intent or indicative offer has been made in relation to any proposed transaction and after internal due diligence has been carried out and the AIFM, following consultation with the Board, gives instructions to the Investment Adviser as to whether to proceed to enter into further due diligence and negotiations in relation to that transaction. Once full due diligence and negotiations have been completed, the Investment Adviser delivers reports and a recommendation to the AIFM and after performing its own evaluation, the AIFM makes a recommendation to the Board as to the suitability of the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. Any final investment decision in respect of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment will be made by the Board.
The Company has established procedures to deal with any potential conflicts of interest in circumstances where the Aquila Group is advising both the AIFM (for the Company) and Aquila Managed Funds who are counterparties to the Company. These procedures may, on a case by case basis, include:
The Company enters into and intends to enter into joint acquisitions with third parties, including any Aquila Managed Funds, only on terms that ensure that the acquisition will conform to the Investment Policy and on equitable terms taking into account the size of the Company compared to the joint venture partners. Any such arrangement shall, where possible, be documented by way of a shareholder's agreement or similar. Any such agreement or similar arrangements will be negotiated with a view to ensuring assurance that, amongst other things, no action is taken in relation to the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments which would result in the Company being in breach of its Investment Policy or borrowing restrictions.
The Company will, drawing on the advice provided to the AIFM by the Investment Advisor, seek to actively manage electricity sales and hedging contracts to achieve an appropriate balance of risk and return, with a view to placing or extending contracts of varying terms for at least 15 years from an asset's commercial operations date when available in the market from counterparties of sound financial standing on reasonable commercial terms.
The Company or its SPVs, as the case may be, may enter into PPAs. A PPA is an arrangement between a generator of electricity and off-taker to sell and purchase electricity outside wholesale spot electricity markets. PPAs can be based on any type of energy source, but their increasing popularity in Europe has been driven by the increase in renewable generation. Please refer to Part III paragraph "Existing Portfolio Overview" for an overview of current PPA arrangements.
The PPA pricing agreement may include different structures, for example fixed prices per MWh produced or pricing mechanisms where a certain price range is hedged (e.g. collar or floor structures). Aquila Capital's Merchant Market Desk (MMD) is responsible for energy risk management strategies and hedging scenarios are analysed on a case by case basis in order to find the optimal risk-return balance.
The MMD offers services throughout the lifetime of a project and is the hub for hedging activities across the Aquila Group. These services include but are not only limited to PPAs, as other risks (such as FX and interest rates) are managed by the MMD as well:
The key elements of a PPA include contractual parties, volume, pricing and tenor.
Generators can enter into PPAs to secure long term, stable cash flows in order to reduce exposure to merchant risk in the power market and increase the bankability of projects. Off-takers are typically:
PPAs are typically structured with one or more of the following features depending on the risk appetite of the generator and off-taker, considering volume delivery obligations (how much to deliver) and delivery production profile (when to deliver):
| Types of PPA | Volume delivery obligation & delivery profile |
Volume risk | Production profile risk |
Merchant risk(1) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fixed Volume |
Baseload | Predefined volumes 1 according to a predefined hourly profile Delivery profile obligations 1 |
1 | イ | × |
| for every hour Pre-agreed price |
|||||
| Fixed Annual/ Quarterly Volume |
Annual/Quarterly pre- 1 defined volumes |
||||
| Delivery profile obligation within the predefined timeframe but no matter when |
√ | × | × | ||
| Pre-agreed price 1 |
|||||
| Pay- As-produced | Pre-agreed % of production 1 at a pre-agreed price |
× | × | ||
| No volume delivery 1 obligation or delivery profile obligation |
× | ||||
| Route-to-Market | Pre-agreed % of production 1 at market spot price |
× | J | ||
| No volume delivery 1 obligation or delivery profile obligation |
× | ||||
| No fixed price 1 |
|||||
| (1) Merchant exposure depends on the percentage of production covered by the PPA |
________
Under this arrangement, the generator agrees to a predetermined production volume that must be delivered in a specified period in exchange for a pre-agreed fixed price per MWh for delivery over the term of the PPA. If actual production is below the predetermined production volume, the generator would be responsible for procuring the missing volumes from the market. Prices under this type of arrangement tend to be higher to reflect the volume delivery obligations, i.e. the generators bear volume risk.
The most common delivery period is hourly ("Baseload"). Generators can earn higher price under a Baseload PPA because it has a strict hourly delivery obligation and therefore the generator bears a higher degree of under-producing risk.
It is also possible to structure a Fixed Volume PPA with a more flexible delivery profile, over, for instance, quarterly and annual periods. Under these models, the generator is obliged to deliver the total predetermined volumes in the agreed period but is not constrained in terms of the timing of the delivery. This type of PPA is less common and usually set at a lower price than Baseload PPAs.
There are different structures for firm price PPAs according to the relative risk off-takers and producers want to bear. Alternatively, there is also the possibility of using floor prices that protect from decreases in prices while allowing for upside potential.
Another alternative is the collar structure where a certain price range is fixed. On the one hand, this protects from decreasing power prices but limits the upside potential as a pre-defined price cannot be exceeded. However, the collar structure might be most attractive under cost-benefit considerations.
Under an As-Produced PPA the off-taker agrees to purchase all or a percentage of the produced volumes at a pre-agreed fixed price, regardless of the level of the actual production. As there is no target production volume, the generator does not take any volume or profile risk. As-Produced PPAs are less common than Fixed Volume PPAs and the price is usually significantly lower than for Fixed Volume PPAs.
Under a Route-to-Market PPA, the generator establishes a contract with an off-taker which has the appropriate trading capabilities, e.g. a utility or corporate with in-house trading capability or a third party service provider, to sell on electricity produced at the prevailing market price, without any volume or production profile risk. The off-taker applies a service fee to the achieved sales price for selling the electricity. Under this arrangement, the generator does not have a price hedge and is exposed to market prices. The exposure to merchant risk provides the generator with the opportunity to achieve the highest electricity sales price. The appropriate share of revenues under a Route-to-Market PPA depends on the generator's view on the development of the electricity prices and its risk appetite.
The tenor of utility PPAs is usually dependent on the time horizon and the liquidity of the electricity forward market.
From a generator's perspective, longer PPA tenors are beneficial for debt structuring and terms but provide limited scope to access merchant upside from potential power price growth in the future.
Overall, PPAs with stricter delivery obligations tend to be balanced with a more attractive remuneration for the generator. Whilst the higher the proportion of production is hedged with a fixed price PPA with delivery obligations the better price the generator, the risks of being unable to meet the delivery obligations and merchant exposure also increase. Appetite for merchant exposure derived from volume and profile risks is usually the key deciding factor for generators to develop an optimal structure for PPAs.

When considering the structure of PPAs, the views on market risk and outlook are the key driver behind approaches to power purchase, given the trade-off between security (e.g. price certainty) and potential upside (e.g. long term prices in merchant market). Analysis of the risk profile of different products and consideration of visible, long term revenue and the potential to capture potential upside on long term prices are key to the right balance between risk and return.
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The Investment Adviser oversees and monitors the asset management of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments in the Company's portfolio. Each operating Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment has an O&M Agreement and the performance of these O&M Agreements are overseen by the Investment Adviser.
The Aquila Group's approach to asset management is to supervise the renewable energy plants and contractual counterparties as well as to troubleshoot issues and spearhead solution management.
The Aquila Group employs specialised teams by reference to each generation technology to supervise the financial, commercial and administrative activities necessary to achieve financial performance as well as technical tasks associated with asset operation, and in particular the monitoring, analysis and reporting of risks and performance, to drive improvement and to anticipate asset-specific issues as they arise.
The Aquila Group's asset management approach aims to capture and preserve value over the asset's entire lifetime through:
timely and continuing supervision of asset operations,
acting as a coordinator to the various project participants, from the asset owners and debt providers to technical and commercial partners, to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and competences to optimise performance, and drawing on available skills to solve any unexpected asset issues as they arise,
Up to 30 per cent of the Company's portfolio may be invested in construction and development projects. The Aquila Group is an experienced manager of development and construction projects in various jurisdictions throughout Europe.
Development and construction services will be provided by third parties and/or members of the Aquila Group contracted by SPVs. The Aquila Group will also be contracted to initiate, monitor and supervise these third parties and the relevant project and for this purpose will provide technical, financial and other support to the relevant SPV. Once an asset is operational, the Aquila Group will carry out asset management activities in the same way as for other Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments in the portfolio.
The Aquila Group's catalogue of services to development projects comprises:
One of the main principles employed by the Aquila Group is the efficient use of investor capital without adding additional layers of costly administration to the project management.
The Aquila Group seeks to mitigate any material issues it discovers that it believes could adversely impact the value of an asset under development/construction by putting in place contractual arrangements such as:
Post-completion risks (e.g. technical, financial and legal risks) are mitigated by implementing safeguarding mechanisms such as guarantees, representations and warranties, indemnities or similar contractual protections. The range of specific protections agreed will depend on a range of factors (for example, the complexity and size of the project and the type of asset). Technical risks (and the financial risks arising from a technical failure) are usually mitigated by warranties or similar given by the manufacturer or construction contractor of the relevant asset. During the counterparty selection process, the Aquila Group therefore pays particularly close attention to the financial solvency of the counterparties.
The Company does not and has no intention of using hedging or derivatives for investment purposes but may from time to time use derivative instruments such as futures, options, futures contracts and swaps (collectively "Derivatives") to protect the Company from fluctuations of interest rates or electricity prices. The Derivatives must be traded on a regulated market or by private agreement entered into with financial institutions or reputable entities specialised in this type of transaction.
The Company may make use of long-term limited recourse debt for Relevant Energy Infrastructure Investments to provide leverage for those specific investments. The Company may also take on longterm structural debt provided that at the time of entering into (or acquiring) any new long-term structural debt (including limited recourse debt), total long term structural debt will not exceed 50 per cent. of the prevailing Gross Asset Value. For the avoidance of doubt, in calculating gearing, no account will be taken of any Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments that are made by the Company by way of a debt or mezzanine investment. In addition, the Company may make use of short-term debt, such as a revolving credit facility, to assist with the acquisition of suitable opportunities as and when they become available. Such short-term debt will be subject to a separate gearing limit so as not to exceed 25 per cent. of the Gross Asset Value at the time of entering into (or acquiring) any such short-term debt.
In circumstances where the above limits are exceeded as a result of gearing of one or more Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments in which the Company has a non-controlling interest, the borrowing restrictions will be deemed not to be breached. However, in such circumstances, the matter will be brought to the attention of the Board who will determine the appropriate course of action.
The AIFM will ensure that a liquidity management system is employed for monitoring the Company's liquidity risks. The AIFM will ensure, on behalf of the Company, that the Company's liquidity position is consistent at all times with its Investment Policy, liquidity profile and distribution policy. Cash held pending investment in Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments or for working capital purposes will be either held in cash or invested in cash equivalents, near cash instruments, bearer bonds and money market instruments.
Under the AIFM Agreement, the AIFM, which is authorised and regulated in Guernsey by the Guernsey Financial Services Commission has been appointed by the Company to provide portfolio and risk management services acting within the strategic guidelines set out in the Investment Policy and subject to the overall supervision of the Board. The Board retains the ultimate authority to make decisions in respect of the acquisition of new investments and the disposal of assets in the Company's portfolio.
The AIFM has appointed Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH, a private limited liability company under the laws of Germany registered in Germany with the commercial register of the local court of Hamburg under HRB 119570 with a registered address of Valentinskamp 70, D- 20355, Hamburg, Germany, as its investment adviser. The Investment Adviser is regulated in Germany by BaFin.
The Aquila Group was founded in 2001 with a focus on renewable energy infrastructure. Since its inception it has undertaken a range of advisory mandates, mostly focused on renewable energy infrastructure. The Investment Adviser's directors have, between them, in aggregate over 71 years of experience in the renewable energy sector.
Further details in relation to the AIFM, Investment Adviser and the Investment Adviser's management team are set out in Part V of this Prospectus.
The Company's issued share capital comprises 193,770,815 Ordinary Shares as at 16 September 2020 (being the last practicable date before the publication of this document). The Ordinary Shares are admitted to trading on the Main Market for listed securities of the London Stock Exchange and will be listed on the premium segment of the Official List.
The Ordinary Shares carry the right to receive all dividends declared by the Company, save as set out on
page 57 of this document.
Shareholders are entitled on a winding-up, provided the Company has satisfied all of its liabilities, to all of the surplus assets of the Company.
Shareholders will be entitled to attend and vote at all general meetings of the Company and, on a poll, to one vote for each Ordinary Share held.
The Company has a wholly owned subsidiary, Tesseract Holdings, which holds the Portfolio through SPVs.
Subject to having sufficient distributable reserves to do so, the Company is targeting a minimum of 4.0 cents per Ordinary Share in relation to the financial year ending 31 December 2020 and 5.0 cents per Ordinary Share in respect of subsequent financial years, with the aim of increasing this dividend progressively over the medium term. 29
Distributions on the Ordinary Shares are expected to be paid quarterly, normally in respect of the three months to 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and 31 December, and are expected to be made by way of interim dividends to be declared in May, August, November and February.
The Company will declare dividends in Euro and Shareholders will, by default, receive dividend payments in Euros. Shareholders may, on completion of a dividend election form, elect to receive dividend payments in Sterling. The date on which the exchange rate between Euro and Sterling is set will be announced at the time the dividend is declared. A further announcement will be made once the exchange rate has been set. Dividend election forms will be available from the Registrar on request.
The Company announced its first dividend of 0.75 cents per Ordinary Share in November 2019 and a further 0.75 cents per Ordinary Share dividend payment in February 2020, in respect of the quarterly periods to September and December 2019 respectively. On 12 May 2020, the Company announced a dividend of 0.75 cents per Ordinary Shares in relation to the quarter ended 31 March 2020. On 5 August 2020, the Company announced a dividend of 0.75 cents in relation to the quarter ended 30 June 2020 which was paid on 14 September 2020.
The Board may also, with the prior authority of the Shareholders of the Company and subject to such terms and conditions as the Board may determine, offer to holders of Ordinary Shares (excluding any member holding Ordinary Shares as treasury shares) the right to elect to receive Ordinary Shares, credited as fully paid, instead of the whole (or some part, to be determined by the Board) of any dividend. The Directors believe that the ability for Shareholders to elect to receive future dividends from the Company wholly or partly in the form of new Ordinary Shares in the Company rather than in cash is likely to benefit both the Company and certain Shareholders. The Company would also benefit from the ability to retain cash which would otherwise be paid as dividends.
To the extent that a scrip dividend alternative is offered in respect of any future dividend, Shareholders would be able to increase their shareholdings without incurring dealing costs or paying stamp duty reserve tax. The decision whether to offer such a scrip dividend alternative in respect of any dividend will be made by the Directors at the time the relevant dividend is declared and must be authorised by an ordinary resolution of the Company.
As described in Part X of this Prospectus, the Directors have been granted authority to offer a scrip dividend alternative to Shareholders in respect of any financial period ending on or before the third AGM of the Company. The Board intends to seek renewal of this resolution at each subsequent annual general meeting of the Company.
29 This is a target only and not a profit forecast. There can be no assurance that this target can or will be met and it should not be seen as an indication of the Company's expected or actual results or returns. Accordingly, investors should not place any reliance on these targets in deciding whether to invest in Ordinary Shares or assume that the Company will make any distributions at all.
The Company has Shareholder authority (subject to all applicable legislation and regulations) to purchase in the market up to 14.99 per cent. per annum of the Ordinary Shares in issue as at 8 June 2020. This authority will expire at the conclusion of the next annual general meeting of the Company or, if earlier, fifteen months from the date of the ordinary resolution. The Board intends to seek renewal of this authority from Shareholders at each annual general meeting.
If the Board does decide that the Company should repurchase Ordinary Shares, purchases will only be made through the market for cash at prices below the estimated prevailing Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share and where the Board believes such purchases will result in an increase in the Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share. Such purchases will only be made in accordance with the Companies Act and the Listing Rules, which currently provide that the maximum price to be paid per Ordinary Share must not be more than the higher of (i) 5 per cent. above the average of the mid-market values of the Ordinary Shares for the five Business Days before the purchase is made and (ii) the higher of the last independent trade and the highest current independent bid for the Ordinary Shares.
If, in the one month period following the announcement of either the interim or year-end Net Asset Value, the Ordinary Shares have, on average over that period, traded at a discount in excess of 5 per cent. to the Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share as announced (adjusting for any dividends paid in the period), it will be the Board's intention to repurchase Ordinary Shares, subject always to the income and cash flow requirements of the Company and any regulatory constraints or other economic factors that the Board considers it prudent to take into account at the relevant time.
Prospective Shareholders should note that the exercise by the Board of the Company's powers to repurchase Ordinary Shares is entirely discretionary and they should place no expectation or reliance on the Board exercising such discretion on any one or more occasions. Moreover, prospective Shareholders should not expect as a result of the Board exercising such discretion, to be able to realise all or part of their holding of Ordinary Shares, by whatever means available to them, at a value reflecting their underlying net asset value.
The Company is permitted to hold Ordinary Shares acquired by way of market purchase in treasury, rather than having to cancel them. Such Ordinary Shares may be subsequently cancelled or sold for cash. Holding Ordinary Shares in treasury would give the Company the ability to sell Ordinary Shares from treasury quickly and in a cost efficient manner and would provide the Company with additional flexibility in the management of its capital base. However, unless authorised by Shareholders by special resolution, in accordance with the Listing Rules, the Company will not sell Ordinary Shares out of treasury for cash at a price below the prevailing Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share unless they are first offered pro rata to existing Shareholders.
The Company has been established with an indefinite life. However, Shareholders will have the opportunity to vote on an ordinary resolution on the continuation of the Company at the AGM to be held in 2023, and every four years thereafter. If any such ordinary resolution is not passed, the Directors shall draw up proposals for the voluntary liquidation, unitisation, reorganisation or reconstruction of the Company for consideration by Shareholders at a general meeting to be convened for a date not more than six months after the date of the meeting at which such ordinary resolution was not passed.
The Investment Adviser produces fair market valuations of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments according to the Valuation Policy. The valuations are performed on 31 December and updated on 31 March, 30 June, 30 September each year. The valuation principles used to calculate the fair value of the assets are based on International Private Equity and Venture Capital Valuation Guidelines.
Fair value for each investment is derived from the present value of the investment's expected future cash flows, using reasonable assumptions and forecasts for revenues and operating costs, and an appropriate discount rate. The Investment Adviser exercises its judgement in assessing the expected future cash flows from each investment. Each SPV produces financial models and the Investment Adviser will take, inter alia, the following into account in its review of such models and will make amendments where appropriate:
The Administrator calculates the Net Asset Value of the Company based on the valuations of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments provided by the Investment Adviser to the AIFM and taking into account the cash and other non-investment assets held by the Company and the accrued liabilities and expenses of the Company. The Net Asset Value of the Company is calculated in accordance with IFRS on a stand-alone basis and is expressed in Euros.
The Board approves each quarterly Net Asset Value, which will be announced as soon as possible on a Regulatory Information Service, by publication on its website www.aquila-european-renewables-incomefund.com and on www.londonstockexchange.com.
The Net Asset Value calculation in respect of the Company's financial year end (i.e., as at 31 December in each year) will be audited by the Company's auditors.
The Board may determine that the Company shall temporarily suspend the determination of the Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share when the value of any investments owned by the Company cannot be promptly or accurately ascertained. Any suspension in the calculation of the NAV will be notified via a Regulatory Information Service as soon as practicable after any such suspension occurs.
The audited accounts of the Company are drawn up in Euros and prepared in line with IFRS.
The Company's annual report and accounts will be prepared up to 31 December each year and the annual report and accounts for the first accounting period of the Company from 8 April 2019 to 31 December 2019 is set out in the Annual Report. The audited historical financial information on the Company for the financial period ended 31 December 2019 as set out in the Annual Report is incorporated by reference into this Prospectus and is available on the Company's website: www.aquila-european-renewables-incomefund.com.
The Company will publish interim results up to 30 June each year. The unaudited interim results for the financial period from 1 January 2020 to 30 June 2020 as set out in the Interim Results are incorporated by reference into this Prospectus and are available on the Company's website: www.aquila-europeanrenewables-income-fund.com.
Future annual reports and accounts including interim results will also be made available on the Company's website, www.aquila-european-renewables-income-fund.com, on or around the date that hard copies are dispatched to Shareholders and publication of such documents will be notified to Shareholders by means of an announcement on a Regulatory Information Service.
The Ordinary Shares are quoted on the London Stock Exchange in both Euros (the "Euro Quote") and Sterling (the "Sterling Quote"). The Euro Quote and the Sterling Quote appear alongside each other in respect of the Ordinary Shares and will not represent separate share classes. For the avoidance of doubt, shares traded under either quote will have the same currency exposure, namely Euros. The Company's financial statements are prepared in Euros and dividends are declared and paid in Euros unless the Shareholder has previously elected to receive dividend payments in Sterling.
The Board believes that providing both a Euro Quote and a Sterling Quote is likely to broaden the potential ownership of the Ordinary Shares and in due course may therefore enhance their liquidity in the secondary market.
As set out below, the same ISIN will apply for both the Euro Quote and the Sterling Quote but there will be separate SEDOLs and TIDMs.
| Euro Quote | Sterling Quote | |
|---|---|---|
| ISIN | GB00BK6RLF66 | GB00BK6RLF66 |
A general meeting of the Company is due to be held on 6 October 2020 at which the Company will seek from Shareholders the approvals necessary for the Issue to proceed and for the Placing Programme to be implemented including, inter alia, resolutions to:
The Issue is conditional on the passing of Resolution 1 and 2. and the Placing Programme is conditional on the passing of Resolution 3 and 4.
The Board is responsible for the determination of the Company's investment objective and policy and has overall responsibility for the Company's activities including the review of investment activity and performance. The Board will also make the decision to acquire or dispose of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments based on recommendations made by the AIFM acting upon the advice given by the Investment Adviser.
The Directors are all non-executive and are all independent of the Investment Adviser. The Directors are listed below and details of their current and recent directorships and partnerships are set out in paragraph 9 of Part X of this Prospectus.
Ian Nolan led the team which was recruited by the UK Government in 2011 to establish the UK Green Investment Bank and was its Chief Investment Officer until 2014. Previously, Ian held the position of Chief Investment Officer at 3i PLC and was a director of Telecity Group plc. He is currently a Partner and Chairman of the Investment Committee of Circularity Capital LLP. Ian has three decades of experience in finance, private equity and investment management. He qualified as a chartered accountant with Arthur Andersen and graduated with a BA in Economics from Cambridge University.
David MacLellan is the founder and currently Chairman of RJD Partners, a midmarket private-equity business focused on the services and leisure sectors. Previously, David was the Chairman of John Laing Infrastructure Fund and an executive director of Aberdeen Asset Managers plc following its acquisition in 2000 of Murray Johnstone where he was latterly Chief Executive having joined the company in 1984. David has served on the boards of a number of companies and is currently a non-executive director of J&J Denholm Limited and chairman of Stone Technologies. He is a past council member of the British Venture Capital Association and is a member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland.
Kenneth MacRitchie has over 30 years' experience of advising on the financing, development and operation of independent power projects across Europe, Middle East and Africa. He was a partner at the global law firm, Clifford Chance and, thereafter, at Shearman & Sterling where he served on their Management Board. He also has experience of advising the UK Government on renewable energy policy and led the establishment of Low Carbon Contracts Company Limited, the UK Government owned company which provides subsidies for the UK renewables industry. He is a graduate of the Universities of Glasgow, Aberdeen and Manchester.
Dr Patricia Rodrigues has over 17 years of leadership experience in infrastructure and real asset investment and management and investment banking. She began her career in finance at Morgan Stanley. Subsequently, she worked for Macquarie Group, including as a Managing Director (Real Assets), where she was responsible for developing and coordinating new Infrastructure, Real Estate, Agriculture Timber and Energy investment products globally. She was a founding member and Head of Portfolio Investment Management for UK Green Investment Bank before leading the growth strategy of the non-real estate Real Assets discretionary business for The Townsend Group. More recently, she served as Infrastructure Senior Director for PSP Investments and has since been advising infrastructure funds and UHNWI's in real assets. Patricia graduated with an M Eng-equivalent in Chemical Engineering from The University of Porto and a PhD in Chemical Engineering from Cambridge University.
The Company is committed to high standards of corporate governance and the Board is responsible for ensuring the appropriate level of corporate governance is met.
The Company complies with the principles of good governance contained in the UK Corporate Governance Code and is a member of the AIC and complies with the AIC Code, which complements the UK Corporate Governance Code and provides a framework of best practice for listed investment companies.
All of the Directors are non-executive and they are all independent of the Investment Adviser for the
The Board delegates certain responsibilities and functions to the Audit and Risk Committee, which comprises David MacLellan, Kenneth MacRitchie and Patricia Rodrigues and has written terms of reference, which are summarised below.
The Audit and Risk Committee, chaired by David MacLellan, meets at least three times a year. Appointments to the committee are for a period of up to three years, which may be extended for further periods of up to three years, provided the Director still meets the criteria for membership of the committee. The Directors consider that they collectively have the requisite skills and experience to fulfil the responsibilities of the Audit and Risk Committee.
The Audit and Risk Committee will review the scope and results of the external audit, its cost effectiveness and the independence and objectivity of the external auditors, including the provision of non-audit services. Each year the Audit and Risk Committee will review the independence of the auditors. Additionally, the Audit and Risk Committee will advise the Board on the Company's overall risk appetite, tolerance and strategy, oversee and advise the Board on the current risk exposures of the Company and future risk strategy. The Audit and Risk Committee will consider and approve the remit of the risk management function and ensure it has adequate resources and appropriate access to information to enable it to perform its function effectively and in accordance with the relevant professional standards and corporate governance codes.
The Remuneration and Nomination Committee comprises Kenneth MacRitchie, David MacLellan and Patricia Rodrigues and has written terms of reference, which are summarised below.
The Remuneration and Nomination Committee, chaired by Kenneth MacRitchie, meets at least once every financial year and has responsibility for (i) considering the remuneration of the Directors, (ii) identifying individuals qualified to become Board members and selecting the director nominees for election at general meetings of the Shareholders or for appointment to fill vacancies; (iii) determining director nominees for each committee of the Board; and (iv) considering the appropriate composition of the Board and its committees. Appointment to the Remuneration and Nomination Committee is for a period of up to three years, which may be extended for further periods of up to three years, provided the director still meets the criteria for membership of the committee. In addition, the chairing of the Audit and Risk Committee, the Remuneration and Nomination Committee and each Director's performance will be reviewed annually by the Chair and the performance of the Chair will be assessed by the remaining Directors.
The Board as a whole also fulfils the functions of a management engagement committee. The Board annually reviews and considers the actions and judgements of management in relation to the interim and annual financial statements and the Company's compliance with the UK Corporate Governance Code, the Listing Rules, the Disclosure and Transparency Rules and the AIC Code. The Board also reviews the role of the Investment Adviser and the AIFM and examines the effectiveness of the Company's internal control systems.
The Directors have adopted a code of directors' dealings in Ordinary Shares (the "Share Dealing Code") in order to ensure that, in particular, any such dealings take place in accordance with the terms of the Market Abuse Regulation. The Board will be responsible for taking all proper and reasonable steps to ensure compliance with the Share Dealing Code by the Directors.
The Board is responsible for the determination of the Company's investment objective and policy and has overall responsibility for its activities. The Company has, however, entered into the AIFM Agreement under which the AIFM is responsible for the day-to-day management of the Company's investment portfolio, in accordance with the Company's investment objective and policy, subject to the overall supervision of the Board. As set out in Part IV of this Prospectus, the Board will have the final decision regarding the acquisition or divestment of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments.
The Investment Adviser will provide investment advisory and asset management services and will act within the strategic guidelines set out in the Company's Investment Policy. The Investment Adviser will report to the AIFM.
The Company has appointed IFM to serve as its alternative investment fund manager. The AIFM is a Guernsey licensed investment manager and forms part of the PraxisIFM Group. The AIFM has a strong track record in providing management and risk advisory services to funds and investment managers since 2006. The AIFM currently provides services to 29 funds with an aggregate asset value in excess of \$6.0 billion. The AIFM maintains professional indemnity insurance of not less than £10,000,000.
In accordance with the provisions set out in the AIFM Agreement, the AIFM is authorised to:
In accordance with the AIFM Agreement, the AIFM is entitled to delegate, under its own responsibility, part of its duties and powers to another person or entity having the requisite experience and deemed appropriate by the AIFM. Any such delegation is and will be made in accordance with the AIFM Agreement. In particular, the AIFM has engaged the Investment Adviser for investment advisory purposes pursuant to the Investment Advisory Agreement.
The AIFM was incorporated, registered and domiciled in Guernsey under Guernsey Companies Law with registration number 17484 on 3 September 1987. The head office is located at Sarnia House, Le Truchot, St Peter Port, Guernsey, GY1 1GR and its website is www.intfundmanagement.com. IFM can be contacted by writing to its head office or by calling, within business hours, +44 (0)1481 737600. None of the content on the IFM website or the content of any website accessible from hyperlinks on IFM's website is incorporated into, or forms part of, this document.
The AIFM has appointed Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH as the investment adviser to the AIFM in respect of the Company. Under the terms of the Investment Advisory Agreement between the AIFM and the Investment Adviser, the Investment Adviser will (i) analyse and assess suitable Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments; (ii) advise the AIFM in relation to the analysis and evaluation of suitable Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments (including but not limited to follow on investments and reinvestments) and any transaction related thereto; (iii) advise the AIFM in relation to acquisitions and disposals of assets; (iv) provide asset valuations to assist the Administrator in the calculation of the quarterly Net Asset Value; and (v) provide operation, monitoring and asset management services. The AIFM has appointed the Investment Adviser for an initial period of four years and thereafter the Investment Advisory Agreement is terminable on twelve months' notice by either party (or on immediate notice in certain, usual, circumstances).
Aquila Capital was incorporated on 28 June 2011 and its LEI is 529900C47XTFVJDVEE24. The head office is located at Valentinskamp 70, D-20355, Hamburg, Germany and its website is https://www.aquilacapital.de/en/. Aquila Capital can be contacted by writing to its head office or by calling, within business hours, +49 (0)40 87 50 50 100. None of the content on the Aquila Capital website or the content of any website accessible from hyperlinks on Aquila Capital's website is incorporated into, or forms part of, this document.
The Aquila Group is an experienced and long-term investor in essential, real asset investments. Founded in 2001 by Dr. Dieter Rentsch and Roman Rosslenbroich, the Aquila Group currently manages and advises €11.1 billion for its clients worldwide (as at 30 June 2020). Last year Aquila entered into a strategic partnership with Daiwa Energy & Infrastructure.
The Aquila Group specialises in secular and sustainable trends in renewable energy, social housing, green logistics, infrastructure, timber and agriculture. Dedicated specialist investment teams with entrepreneurial mindsets draw on their sector networks and experience to screen, develop, finance, manage and operate investments along the entire value chain. As this concept requires local management teams and a local presence, Aquila Capital has 14 investment offices in 12 countries. These comprehensive operational capabilities, including more than 350 employees at group level, an intensive asset management approach and a passion for detail ensure asset and product performance as well as the timely deployment of capital. The Aquila Group believes in stringent corporate governance. With its two AIFMs in Luxembourg and Germany, it is subject to the highest European regulatory standards.

The Aquila Group is focused on performance and value creation for its clients by spotting macro trends, dislocations and tipping points coupled with bottom-up management by specialised investment teams. The Aquila Group pursues operational stability and corporate governance to generate sustainable positive returns for its investors. It centres on sustainable trends in the areas of renewable energy, social housing, green logistics, infrastructure, timber and agriculture as well as niche financial market strategies. The Aquila Group offers a focused range of real asset investment solutions managed by dedicated specialists in their respective asset classes.
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Roman Rosslenbroich is responsible for the Aquila Group's corporate development and strategy, key account management, audit and acquisition functions. Prior to founding the company, Roman was head of the fixed income division at Salomon Brothers in Frankfurt. He holds a master's degree in business from the Goethe University, Frankfurt.
Dieter Rentsch is responsible for investment strategies, investment processes and research at the Aquila Group. Prior to founding the company, Dieter was head of macro-economic research at MunichRe (MEAG). He has over 30 years of experience in the investment sector. He holds a PhD in nuclear physics from the University of Giessen.
Michaela Maria Eder von Grafenstein heads Aquila Group's investment and asset management for real asset classes, as well as fund management, product structuring and tax. She has more than 25 years of local and international experience in alternative assets, credit management, risk management, product development and corporate governance. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2013, Michaela held numerous top management positions at Allianz, Dresdner Bank and the Deutsche Bank Group. She holds a degree in law from the Ludwig Maximilians University of Munich.
Florian Becker heads Aquila Group's legal, operations and investor relations and services divisions. He was also Chief Compliance Officer until the beginning of 2019. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2013, Florian worked as a lawyer at an international law firm specialising in corporate, supervisory and real estate law. As part of his work for a large Australian law firm in Sydney he gained his first experience in the field of renewable energies in 2008-2009. Florian completed his law studies at the Georg August University in Göttingen and received his doctorate from the University of Regensburg.
Albert Sowa is responsible for risk management both at the asset and corporate level. He has more than 35 years of professional experience. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2016, he was the Global Head of Credit Risk Management, Non-Bank Financial Institutions at Commerzbank, where he managed a global credit portfolio with teams in Frankfurt, London, New York and Singapore. He was previously Chief Credit Officer at BHF Bank, with risk responsibility for an international credit portfolio. He also had risk responsibility for both corporate and public sector customers at Deutsche Bank. He has held a number of senior positions dedicated to commercial real estate and international corporates. Albert graduated as a banking specialist from the Frankfurt School of Finance & Management.
Lars Meisinger oversees the Aquila Group's international client advisory and corporate development. He has more than 18 years of experience in the finance sector. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2016, Lars was responsible for strategic product development at UBS Asset Management. He previously served as Chief Operating Officer at BlackRock Alternative Investors for the EMEA region. His long professional experience includes eight years in management roles at Man Group and senior positions at AXA Investment Managers in both London and Frankfurt. Lars holds a master's degree in economics from Maastricht University and a bachelor's degree from Johann Wolfgang Goethe University, Frankfurt. He is a Chartered Alternative Investment Analyst.
Susanne Wermter's team focuses their investment activities on wind, solar and direct infrastructure investments located in Europe. Susanne has 15 years of industry experience. Her experience includes managing assets throughout all phases of their investment lifecycle and she has been involved in the implementation of more than 50 transactions. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2013, she held senior positions in project financing at SunEdison and she was also responsible for wind and solar transactions at the Conergy Group. Susanne holds a degree in business administration from the University of Hamburg.
Christine Brockwell is responsible for establishing partnerships with equity investors through the sale of asset portfolios with long-term asset management agreements. In her role as portfolio manager, she serves as lead investment advisor, with overall responsibility for the performance of select products. Christine has more than 15 years of relevant experience. Prior to joining Aquila Capital in 2018, she held positions at Global Capital Finance and UK Green Investment Bank, the world's first green bank. As Head of Offshore Wind at the UK Green Investment Bank, she had overall responsibility for the offshore wind sector and its related investments. Under her management, UK Green Investment Bank invested for the first time in construction-phase offshore wind assets and made investment commitments of €600 million. Christine holds a master's degree in economics from New York University and a bachelor's degree in biology from the Georgia Institute of Technology. Christine will lead the Investment Adviser's team responsible for the Company's investments, including the provision of investment advisory and execution services relating to acquisitions and the ongoing management of the assets.
Tor Syverud's responsibilities include deal sourcing, transaction execution and asset management. Tor has been active in the energy sector since 2003 and has extensive experience in all technical and business areas within the industry. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2015, as a director, he was the CEO and Innovative Technology Manager at Tinfos. Tor was responsible for hydropower, district heating and power grids. Previously, he led Hydro Agri's maintenance and rotary machinery division worldwide. Tor studied in Norway and Japan and holds a PhD in Mechanical Engineering from the Norwegian University of Science and Technology.
Andrew's role covers the origination of new investment opportunities and execution of investment transactions. This includes the identification, analysis and negotiation of transactions. He has a combined experience of 12 years in mergers and acquisitions and investing and continues to closely monitor developments and investment opportunities within the clean energy space and related infrastructure areas. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2015, Andrew was a member of Macquarie Group's German infrastructure and industrials mergers and acquisitions platform. His areas of expertise include wind, solar, other forms of clean energy generation as well as energy transmission and storage. At Aquila, Andrew has been involved in several successfully closed renewable energy transactions throughout Europe with a total capacity of close to 1GW of capacity. Other previous assignments include tank storage, transport and healthcare transactions as well as several private equity transactions in the industrial sector. Andrew holds a master's degree in Accounting and Finance from the University of St. Gallen, Switzerland, and a bachelor of commerce from the University of Western Australia.
Joakim Johnsen heads the merchant market desk and is the Deputy Head of hydropower investments at Aquila Group. Since joining the company, Joakim has led several large transactions and project financings, and negotiated a number of PPAs with off-takers in the Nordic countries and Iberia. He has more than 16 years of experience in the renewable energies sector. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2017, Joakim worked in the international division of the Norwegian utility Statkraft, responsible for the development, acquisition and operation of renewable energy portfolios in emerging markets. While at Statkraft, he held several executive positions, including CFO of Statkraft Peru and CEO of Statkraft Brazil. Joakim led some of the company's largest international M&A transactions and worked on several greenfield projects. Before entering the renewable energies industry, he worked for six years at Gemini Consulting. Joakim holds a bachelor's degree in management sciences from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology and holds an MBA from the Manchester Business School.
Jeroen Wolfs is responsible for the origination of investment opportunities and execution of investment transactions in the area of renewable energy and related energy infrastructure. He also represents the Aquila Group on the board of investee companies during the development and construction of the respective project. He has been in the infrastructure sector since 2006. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2018, Jeroen worked for nine years in the infrastructure team at PGGM, the second largest pension fund asset management company in the Netherlands, most recently as an investment director primarily focusing on the origination and execution of renewable energy transactions. Before that, he worked for the engineering consultancy Grontmij (now Sweco) for four years, advising Dutch pension funds on their real estate and infrastructure portfolios. Jeroen holds a master's degree in engineering from the Eindhoven University of Technology and is also a CFA charterholder.
Karsten Tack is responsible for the pre-purchase and maturity valuations of real asset investments in accordance with national and international standards. He has 18 years of experience in valuing real assets and companies. Prior to joining the Aquila Group in 2017, Karsten worked for Bank of America in mergers & acquisitions. Most recently, he worked for HSH Nordbank, where he served as Executive Director for Corporate Finance, M&A, Energy & Infrastructure. Karsten graduated as an economist from the University of Goettingen.
The Aquila Group has a structured screening, due diligence and investment decision making process. This process is designed to ensure that investments are reviewed and compared on a consistent basis. Execution of this process is facilitated by the team's deep experience in energy infrastructure investing. The high degree of standardisation of the process is also designed to ensure that no diligence or structuring items are missed, thus avoiding process inefficiencies and allowing for efficient execution speed. The key steps of the Aquila Group's investment process are summarised in the below "Investment Process" chart with additional details for each step in the following sections.
The Aquila Capital investment team leverages its relationships with leading developers, operators, owners and users of assets as well as the Aquila Group`s European presence and proprietary information flows to identify investment opportunities. Through analysis of market sectors and geographies, the team seeks to develop a comprehensive base of knowledge from which to draw during acquisition processes. Investment opportunities are initially analysed by the Aquila Capital investment team.
The goal is to determine the key characteristics and value drivers of the asset or company: duration and price level of remuneration schemes/offtake agreements/concessions, expected life of asset, track record of project developer and construction company, stability of regulatory framework, visibility into future performance, barriers to entry, correlation of cash flows to inflation and potential compliance with ESG standards. Finally, expected returns and the ability to close successfully on the investment is assessed.
Throughout the initial assessment stage as well as subsequent stages, the investment team is guided by the investment head and leverages the experience of the Aquila Group's Real Asset Strategy Council ("RSC"). The RSC meets on a weekly basis and seeks to provide guidance and a discussion forum for investment, asset, fund and risk management. The RSC consists of Aquila Group's two founders, the Chief Operating Officer, Group Head Business Unit Real Assets as well as the Chief Risk Officer.
Due to the Aquila Group's comprehensive approach to asset management, the investment team is able to draw upon the experience of its asset management experts to enhance its understanding of the investment opportunity and identify further potential for value creation. The investment team will also liaise with the risk management and structuring teams to ensure critical assumptions have been identified and preliminarily analysed. To avoid potential governance risk, a preliminary "Know-Your-Customer" check is performed. This approach yields a comparatively thorough analysis of the opportunity at an early stage.
If the investment opportunity is in a country or asset class/sector that Aquila Group has not invested in before, the internal "New Product Process" ("NPP") ensures that all relevant departments are involved (product structuring, risk management, finance, legal, fund and asset management, investor relations, tax, valuation, compliance, product administration, human resources). To identify potential challenges and opportunities relating to ESG, the NPP completes an initial ESG assessment. The risk management team investigates all relevant aspects that are raised by the ESG assessment and provides guidance on how to treat any identified risks. For example, a specific ESG due diligence exercise may be undertaken to shed some light on certain relevant aspects.
Once the investment team has developed a sufficiently detailed view of the opportunity and the associated risks and merits, it prepares a short investment proposal and brings the opportunity to the Aquila Group's investment committee for a first formal review. The investment committee retains the right to dismiss any investment opportunity. Should the investment committee decide to proceed, the investment team often seeks to enter into a preliminary discussions with the seller around the parameters of a potential investment. Once a proposal is in place, a comprehensive internal deal team is put together.
Aquila Group's comprehensive in-house resources allow for an efficient and quick due diligence phase as
well as cost savings on external due diligence.
Risk management carries out its own, independent assessment of the opportunity, reviewing project stage, geographical location, regulatory environment, technology in terms of maturity and quality of manufacturers/components and eventually ensuring that return expectations appropriately reflect the opportunity's risk profile. Depending on the stage of development of the project different ESG risks are evaluated. Additionally, risk management examines if the opportunity adheres to the Company's investment criteria and restrictions and if it poses any concentration risks on the existing Company portfolio. Risk management has a discretionary veto-right to stop the investment process at any stage.
Once the deal team has developed a sufficiently detailed view of the opportunity and the associated risks and merits, it prepares an updated investment proposal accompanied with a budget for external due diligence advisors and presents the opportunity again to the Aquila Group's investment committee to request the start of the external due diligence.
For every deal the Aquila Group seeks to assemble leading external advisors to assist in the due diligence process. The composition of the advisors varies on each deal, but usually consists of external legal counsel, tax and structuring advisor, an insurance advisor, and technical advisors (e.g. resource, technical engineers and related specialists to assess ESG aspects). In addition, a financial advisor is usually engaged if the target company has a complex financial history. At first, legal and technical advisors usually deliver red flag reports in order to identify potential deal breakers before a more comprehensive external due diligence is carried out.
The deal team with the support of its external advisors carries out the formal due diligence, structuring, financing, and negotiations on price and structure. These elements are not assessed in isolation but are considered together, as the transaction structure, terms, price, and capital structure need to reflect the due diligence findings specific to the opportunity, including key value and risk drivers.
Risk assessment is a key element to the Aquila Group's due diligence process. In order to evaluate all investment-relevant risks, the Aquila Group uses both internal expertise and external advisors. During the due diligence phase the deal team reviews and tests sensitivities and scenario analyses in order to form an informed view of the risks involved and any corresponding risk-adjusted value.
The main risk factors of a typical investment can be broadly categorised as:
The team has a substantial track record in de-risking projects by identifying, negotiating and structuring contractual solutions to mitigate project-related risks. Accordingly, the deal team will seek to minimise any risks that could impact key variables such as project realisation, volume, price, costs, etc.
For those opportunities that the Aquila Group continues to pursue, the deal team with the support of its external advisors enters into negotiations with the investment counterparties, utilising the due diligence process to ensure that the transaction structure and terms take into account all relevant findings.
All due diligence findings and corresponding contractual and/or commercial solutions are tracked by the investment team in an open issues check list which is independently reviewed by risk management. All project-related agreements/contracts are tracked and updated by the investment managers in close collaboration with the deal team's assigned internal legal experts as well as the external legal advisors. The deal team's tax and structuring experts are responsible for devising the optimal investment structure for the asset. The deal team's asset managers are, amongst others, responsible for reviewing the asset related agreements. During the structuring phase, there is a focus on ensuring that the investment is optimally aligned with the requirements of the investors. In all workstreams all relevant ESG aspects are taken into account.
The internal risk management team carries out a technical audit of the final financial model and risk management reviews the financial model in relation to all relevant assumptions and key value drivers. Risk management also performs standardised sensitivity analyses and stress tests. A fair value assessment is conducted by the internal valuation team (who are independent of the deal team), which reports directly to the Chief Risk Officer of the Aquila Group. The compliance team is responsible for the completion of the "Know Your Customer" and conflict of interest documentation.
The due diligence phase concludes with the preparation of a comprehensive investment proposal from the relevant investment managers and separate statements and approvals from asset management, product structuring, risk management, fund management, valuation and compliance. The documentation is submitted to the investment committee and the managing directors of Aquila Capital for review.
The Aquila Group's investment process is iterative and designed to ensure a high level of scrutiny and due diligence, especially during the execution phase. This will often result in additional or more developed due diligence and analysis requests in the interaction of the deal team with the sellers.
Throughout the investment process, the deal team is engaged in ongoing discussions with the Aquila Group's various internal departments as well as the RSC. Regular updates are provided to the investment committee to allow for an overall efficient investment process and a timely execution of the transaction. This thorough and transparent review process fosters open dialogue on potential issues and risks; a key contributor to the Aquila Group's pricing discipline.
After final reviews have been performed by the investment committee and the managing directors of Aquila Capital, the final investment decision is made. Such decision usually includes the purchase price as well as selected terms and conditions of the transaction including financing. Approval of the submission of a binding bid requires a simple majority of the investment committee. The Chief Risk Officer has a veto right.
The investment process is entirely managed by employees of Aquila Group, there are no responsibilities outsourced.

All assets acquired by the Aquila Group are actively managed through their holding period. The acquisition process has been designed to ensure that the assets are economically optimised within the framework of a strict control process. This process differs from competitors because of the Aquila Group's proactive inhouse approach to asset management throughout the operational life cycle of an asset. Many investment managers who adopt a passive approach have outsourced asset management to external parties. The Aquila Group believes that outsourcing this process increases costs and cannot ensure direct control of the assets.
In the portfolio/asset management phase, two teams are principally involved:
• asset management; and
In particular, the responsibility of the asset management team includes managing the investment structure's multiple assets across various classes in order to realise synergies, the continuous monitoring of asset performance as well as those of external service providers with whom contracts have been established. The asset managers conduct on-site visits and are responsible for troubleshooting if problems arise. In addition, they perform analyses and create target/actual comparisons that include the derivation of key performance indicators. They also monitor and optimise liquidity of the assets.
The risk management team will ensure that a full review of the assets which are owned by a fund or mandate, and/or managed by the Aquila Group, is made throughout the life of each asset.
In the investment committee's weekly session, the current status quo of assets and all related issues are formally discussed. If necessary, troubleshooting measures are implemented.
Following a standardised process, the fund management team ensures efficient management of the investment structure and all associated companies. It takes into account the views of existing and potential investors and is the representative of their interests in the life-cycle process and in lifetime management up to and including exit. Fund management takes over the management and administration of the Aquila Managed Funds (and all associated companies, together also "structure companies") in the interests of investors and is the contact for structurally relevant questions for all internal and external functions as well as stakeholders. In particular, the members of this team ensure compliance with all relevant legal and regulatory requirements and investment criteria for the respective structure. They are involved in the investment process at an early stage, monitor all payments at fund level and ensure sufficient liquidity at all times. The complex and versatile aspects arising from ESG issues are taken into account in the respective teams.
The investment management team oversees potential exit options for the assets in collaboration with fund management and asset management teams. The prerequisite for the sale of an asset is that all involved departments (investment, asset and fund management) give their approval for the sale of the asset and that the pricing of the sale is determined in close cooperation with the risk management team and the valuation team. The process of selling an asset is essentially the same as the process of buying an asset.
The advisory asset management role encompasses advising on operational contracts, PPAs, the management of operational risks, advising the AIFM on the management of power price exposure and preparation of reports for the AIFM.
Deciding on the right type of PPA becomes critical:

Source: Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH
A sophisticated approach to PPAs enables generators to optimise risk-return profile with stable cash flows and access to potential upsides:
_____________________
instrument for all parties involved. PPAs with stricter delivery obligations tend to be balanced with a more attractive remuneration for the generator.
Subject always to the terms of the Investment Policy, as amended from time to time, allocations of investments among the Company and the Investment Adviser's other clients are made in accordance with the Investment Adviser's allocation policy as in effect from time to time. It is the Investment Adviser's current policy that no fund or other account for which Investment Adviser has investment discretion or for which the Investment Adviser acts in an advisory capacity (collectively, "Investment Adviser Clients") receives preferential treatment over any other Investment Adviser Client. In allocating opportunities among Investment Adviser Clients with a substantially similar investment strategy (including, for example the private investment funds, single investor funds and separately managed accounts that include as part of their investment mandate investment in renewable infrastructure assets in the European Union), it is the Investment Adviser's policy that all such Investment Adviser Clients should be treated fairly and equally over time and that, to the extent possible, all Investment Adviser Clients with a substantially similar investment strategy should receive equivalent treatment.
A proposed investment is considered for all Investment Adviser Clients, provided that the investment is eligible under the client's investment criteria. Subject always to the Investment Policy and the paragraph above, opportunities generally will be allocated among those Investment Adviser Clients for which participation in the relevant opportunity is considered appropriate by the Investment Adviser in accordance with the following allocation criteria:
Investment Adviser Clients will then be prioritised according to a combination of the following factors:
The AIFM is responsible for supervising the implementation of the Allocation Policy as it applies to the Company.
The Directors are responsible for establishing and regularly reviewing procedures to identify, manage, monitor and disclose conflicts of interests relating to the activities of the Company.
It is expected that the Aquila Group, the Investment Adviser, the Administrator, Numis, Kempen & Co, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent, any of their respective directors, officers, employees, service providers, agents and connected persons and the Directors and any person or company with whom they are affiliated or by whom they are employed (each an "Interested Party") may be involved in other financial, investment or other professional activities which may cause conflicts of interest with the Company and its Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments. Interested Parties may provide services similar to those provided to the Company and their Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments to other entities and will not be liable to account to the Company for any profit earned from any such services. Interested Parties may also receive and retain fees for providing management (such as legal or accounting) services to any Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments and will not be liable to account to the Company for any profit earned from any such services.
The Investment Adviser and its directors, officers, service providers, employees and agents and the Directors have and will always have due regard to their duties owed to members of the Company and where a conflict arises, they will endeavour to ensure that it is resolved fairly. The Investment Adviser has its own conflict of interest policy in place which is and will be followed in relation to any potential conflicts of interest that arise as a result of their services supplied to both the Company and the Aquila Managed Funds.
Subject to the arrangements explained above, the Company may acquire securities from or dispose of securities to any Interested Party or any investment fund or account advised or managed by any such person. An Interested Party may provide professional services to members of the Group (provided that no Interested Party will act as auditor to the Company) or hold Ordinary Shares and buy, hold and deal in any investments for their own accounts notwithstanding that similar investments may be held by the Company. An Interested Party may contract or enter into any financial or other transaction with any member of the Group or with any shareholder or any entity any of whose securities are held by or for the account of the Company or be interested in any such contract or transaction. Furthermore, any Interested Party may receive commissions to which it is contractually entitled in relation to any sale or purchase of any investments of the Company effected by it for the account of the Company.
The procedures designed to deal with any potential conflicts of interest at the level of investment decisionmaking are set out in Part IV of this Prospectus.
To prevent conflicts arising from the use of information obtained from clients and market abuse generally, all employees and members of the Aquila Group are subject to personal account dealing rules. Any new conflict of interest must be reported to the Aquila Group's compliance department upon becoming aware of the conflict. In the event of a serious conflict of interest, the conflict may be resolved by abstaining from a possible transaction.
PraxisIFM Fund Services (UK) Limited has been appointed to provide administrative and company secretarial services to the Company pursuant to the Administration Agreement (further details are set out in paragraph 10 of Part X of this Prospectus).
The Administrator will be responsible for the maintenance of the books and financial accounts of the Company and the calculation of the Net Asset Value of the Company and the Ordinary Shares based on asset valuations provided by the Investment Adviser.
The secretarial services to be provided by the Administrator will include production of the Company's accounts, assisting with regulatory compliance and providing support to the Board's corporate governance process and its continuing obligations under the Listing Rules and the Disclosure and Transparency Rules. In addition, the Administrator will be responsible for liaising with the Company, the AIFM, the Investment Adviser and the Registrar in relation to the payment of dividends, as well as general secretarial functions required by the Companies Act (including but not limited to the maintenance of the Company's statutory books).
Computershare Investor Services PLC has been appointed as the Company's Registrar pursuant to the Registrar Agreement (further details are set out in paragraph 10 of Part X of this Prospectus).
PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP which is registered to carry out audit work by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales, will provide audit services to the Company.
The costs and expenses of the Issue which will be paid by the Company are estimated to be no more than 2 per cent. of Gross Issue Proceeds and not in excess of €3 million if the target Gross Issue Proceeds are raised. Such costs and expenses are not, however, capped. No fees or expenses in relation to the Issue will be charged to investors and the Company will bear these costs including any abort costs if the Issue does not proceed.
If the Company achieved the target Gross Issue Proceeds of €150 million pursuant to the Issue, the Net Asset Value of the Company immediately following Admission would increase by an estimated €147 million.
The costs and expenses of the Issue will be paid on or around Admission and will include, without limitation, placing fees and commissions, registration, listing and admission fees; printing, advertising and distribution costs, legal fees, and any other applicable expenses. All such expenses will be immediately written off.
The costs and expenses of the Company relating to the Placing Programme are those that arise from, or are incidental to, the issue of Ordinary Shares pursuant to Subsequent Placings. These include the fees payable in relation to each Further Admission, including listing and admission fees, as well as fees and commissions due under the Placing Agreement and any other applicable expenses in relation to the Placing Programme.
The costs and expenses of issuing Ordinary Shares pursuant to any Subsequent Placing will be covered by issuing such Ordinary Shares at the prevailing published Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share at the time of issue together with a premium to at least cover the costs and expenses of the relevant Subsequent Placing of Ordinary Shares (including, without limitation, any placing commissions). No fees or expenses in relation to the Placing Programme will be charged to investors and the Company will bear these costs including any abort costs if any Subsequent Placing does not proceed.
The Company is responsible for its own ongoing operating costs and expenses which include (but are not limited to) the fees and expenses of the AIFM (which will include the fees and expenses payable by the AIFM to the Investment Adviser), the Administrator and the Auditors, as well as listing fees, regulatory fees, expenses associated with any purchases of Ordinary Shares, printing and legal expenses and other expenses (including insurance and irrecoverable VAT).
Under the Investment Advisory Agreement, the following fee is payable to the Investment Adviser:
i) 0.75 per cent. per annum of NAV (plus VAT) of the Company up to €300 million;
ii) 0.65 per cent. per annum of NAV (plus VAT) of the Company between €300 million and €500 million; and
iii) 0.55 per cent. per annum of NAV (plus VAT) of the Company above €500 million.
During the first two years of its appointment, the Investment Adviser has undertaken to apply its fee (net of any applicable tax) in subscribing for, or acquiring, Ordinary Shares. If the Ordinary Shares are trading at a premium to the prevailing NAV, the Company will issue new Ordinary Shares to the Investment Adviser. If, however, the Ordinary Shares are trading at a discount to the prevailing NAV at the relevant time, no new Ordinary Shares will be issued by the Company and instead the Company will instruct its broker to acquire Ordinary Shares to the value of fee due in the relevant period.
The Investment Adviser is also entitled to be reimbursed for certain expenses under the Investment Advisory Agreement. These include out-of-pocket expenses properly incurred by the Investment Adviser in providing services, including transactional, organisational, operating and/or travel expenses.
Although the advisory fee is payable by the AIFM to the Investment Adviser, a corresponding advisory fee is payable, alongside the launch fee and the management fee, to the AIFM under the AIFM Agreement.
Subject to Board approval, any entity of the Aquila Group may from time to time provide professional services (i) to the Company or (ii) to a Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment. These services will be rendered at arm's length. These may include, in particular, advisory, construction, structuring, arrangement of material contracts, such as arrangements of financing contracts, development and/or improvement services as well as energy trading services. Any such services shall be subject to Board approval and provided at prevailing market rates for these services and may be charged to the Company or the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment, whichever is agreed at the time.
The fees and expenses payable to the Directors pursuant to their Letters of Appointment are set out in Part X of this Prospectus.
The target size of the Issue is Gross Issue Proceeds of €150 million. If commitments and applications are received for more than 144,578,313 New Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Issue, the Directors reserve the right to increase the maximum number of New Ordinary Shares that may be issued pursuant to the Issue, provided that the maximum number of New Ordinary Shares that may be issued is 192,771,084 New Ordinary Shares. If Gross Issue Proceeds are not raised such that the Net Issue Proceeds equal or exceed the Minimum Net Proceeds by 12:00 p.m. on 8 October 2020 or such later date as the Company, the Investment Adviser, Numis and Kempen & Co may agree, the Issue will not proceed.
The Board intends that the Net Issue Proceeds will be used by the Company to acquire Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments, which may or may not be sourced from the Enhanced Pipeline and provide sufficient funds for the working capital of the Company.
On the basis that approximately 145 million New Ordinary Shares are to be issued, it is estimated that the Company will receive approximately €147 million from the Issue, net of associated fees, costs and expenses payable by the Company. No fees or expenses in relation to the Issue will be charged to investors and the Company will bear these costs including any abort costs if the Issue does not proceed.
The Issue is being made in order to raise funds for the purpose of achieving the investment objective of the Company, as described in Part IV of this Prospectus.
The Issue is conditional upon, inter alia:
If any of these conditions is not met, the Issue will not proceed.
The Company, Numis, Kempen & Co and the Investment Adviser have entered into the Placing Agreement, pursuant to which Numis and Kempen & Co have agreed, subject to certain conditions, severally (and not jointly or jointly and severally) to act as joint bookrunners to the Placing and to use their respective reasonable endeavours to procure subscribers for the New Ordinary Shares made available in the Placing. The Placing is not underwritten.
The terms and conditions of the Placing are set out in Part XIII of this Prospectus. These terms and conditions should be read carefully before a commitment is made.
Further details of the terms of the Placing Agreement are detailed in paragraph 10 of Part X of this Prospectus.
New Ordinary Shares to be issued at a price of €1.0375 each are available to the public under the Offer for Subscription. The Offer for Subscription is only being made in the UK but, subject to applicable law, the Company may allot New Ordinary Shares on a private placement basis to applicants in other jurisdictions. The terms and conditions of application under the Offer for Subscription are set out in Part XIV of this Prospectus. An Application Form is set out at the end of this Prospectus. The terms and conditions should be read carefully before an application is made. Investors should consult their respective stockbroker, bank manager, solicitor, accountant or other financial adviser if they are in doubt about the contents of this Prospectus. The Offer for Subscription is not underwritten.
Applications under the Offer for Subscription must be for a minimum subscription amount of €1,000 and thereafter in multiples of €100.
The Company has authority to issue up to 500 million Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Placing Programme. Any Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to the Placing Programme will be issued at a price calculated by reference to the prevailing published Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share at the time of issue together with a premium intended to at least cover the costs and expenses of the relevant Subsequent Placing (including, without limitation, any placing commissions). Ordinary Shares issued under the Placing Programme may be issued under this document provided that it is updated by a supplementary prospectus (if required) under section 87G of FSMA and rule 3.4 of the Prospectus Regulation Rules. Further details about the Placing Programme are set out in Part VIII of this Prospectus.
The Directors believe that the issue of New Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Issue should yield the following principal benefits:
The percentage holding of an existing shareholder will be diluted to the extent that they do not participate in the Issue. Where a shareholder does not participate in the Issue but the Issue is fully subscribed, the dilution of the percentage holding for such an existing shareholder would be approximately 42.7 per cent..
The Directors intend to use the net proceeds of the Issue to acquire Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments in accordance with the Company's investment objective and Investment Policy and for working capital purposes.
Subject to those matters on which the Issue is conditional, the Board, with the consent of Numis and Kempen & Co, may bring forward or postpone the closing date for the Issue.
The results of the Issue and the basis of allocation under the Issue are expected to be announced on 9 October 2020 via a Regulatory Information Service.
CREST accounts will be credited on the date of Admission and it is expected that, where Shareholders have requested them, certificates in respect of the New Ordinary Shares to be held in certificated form will be dispatched on week commencing 19 October 2020. Pending receipt by Shareholders of definitive share certificates, if issued, the Registrar will certify any instruments of transfer against the register of members.
To the extent that any application for subscription under the Issue is rejected in whole or in part, or the Board determines in its absolute discretion that the Issue should not proceed, monies received will be returned to each relevant applicant at its risk and without interest.
Multiple applications or suspected multiple applications on behalf of a single client are liable to be rejected.
The ISIN and SEDOLs for the Ordinary Shares are set out below:
| Euro Quote | Sterling Quote | |
|---|---|---|
| ISIN | GB00BK6RLF66 | GB00BK6RLF66 |
| SEDOL | BK6RLF6 | BJMXQK1 |
| Ticker | AERI | AERS |
Applicants may not withdraw their applications for New Ordinary Shares save under Article 23 of the Prospectus Regulation after the publication of a supplementary prospectus prior to the closing date for applications and in accordance with the below.
Applicants who wish to exercise their statutory right pursuant to withdraw their applications after the
publication by the Company of a supplementary prospectus under Article 23 of the Prospectus Regulation must do so by lodging a written notice of withdrawal (which shall include a notice sent by any form of electronic communication) which must include the full name and address of the person wishing to exercise statutory withdrawal rights and, if such person is a CREST member, the Participant ID and the Member Account ID of such CREST Member with Computershare Investor Services PLC, by post or by hand (during normal business hours only) to The Pavilions, Bridgwater Road, Bristol, BS13 8AE or by email to [email protected] so as to be received not later than two Business Days after the date on which the supplementary prospectus is published. Notice of withdrawal given by any other means or which is deposited with or received by Computershare Investor Services PLC after expiry of such period will not constitute a valid withdrawal, provided that the Company will not permit the exercise of withdrawal rights after payment by the relevant applicant of his subscription in full and the allotment of Ordinary Shares to such applicant becoming unconditional. In such event Shareholders are recommended to seek independent legal advice.
The basis of allocation of New Ordinary Shares shall be determined by the Company following consultation with Numis, Kempen & Co and the Investment Adviser. The number of New Ordinary Shares available for subscription pursuant to the Issue may be increased by approximately 48 million New Ordinary Shares subject to a maximum increase in the gross size of the Issue of €50 million.
If subscriptions under the Placing and Offer for Subscription exceed the maximum number of New Ordinary Shares available, the Company will scale back subscriptions at its discretion (following consultation with Numis, Kempen & Co and the Investment Adviser).
The attention of persons resident outside the UK is drawn to the notices to investors set out on pages 131 to 134 of this Prospectus which set out restrictions on the holding of New Ordinary Shares by such persons in certain jurisdictions.
In particular, investors should note that the New Ordinary Shares have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act or with any securities regulatory authority of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States. Accordingly, the New Ordinary Shares may not be offered, sold, pledged or otherwise transferred or delivered, directly or indirectly, in, into or within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, any U.S. Persons.
CREST is a paperless settlement procedure enabling securities to be transferred from one person's CREST account to another without the need to use share certificates or written instruments of transfer. The Articles permit the holding of the New Ordinary Shares under the CREST system and the Company applied for the New Ordinary Shares to be admitted to CREST with effect from the IPO Admission. Accordingly, settlement of transactions in the New Ordinary Shares may take place within the CREST system if any Shareholder so wishes (provided that the New Ordinary Shares are not in certificated form).
CREST is a voluntary system and, upon the specific request of a Shareholder, the New Ordinary Shares of that Shareholder which are being held under the CREST system may be exchanged, in whole or in part, for share certificates.
If a Shareholder or transferee requests New Ordinary Shares to be issued in certificated form, a share certificate will be despatched either to them or their nominated agent (at their own risk) within 21 days of completion of the registration process or transfer, as the case may be, of the New Ordinary Shares. Shareholders who are non-U.S. Persons holding definitive certificates may elect at a later date to hold their New Ordinary Shares through CREST in uncertificated form provided that they surrender their definitive certificates.
Application will be made for the New Ordinary Shares to be admitted to trading on the London Stock Exchange's main market for listed securities. It is expected that Admission will become effective, and that dealings in the New Ordinary Shares will commence, at 8:00 a.m. on 13 October 2020.
Payment for the New Ordinary Shares applied for under the Offer for Subscription should be made in
accordance with the instructions contained in the Application Form set out at the end of this Prospectus. Payment for the New Ordinary Shares to be acquired under the Placing should be made in accordance with settlement instructions provided to investors by Numis and/or Kempen & Co (as applicable). To the extent that any application or subscription for New Ordinary Shares is rejected in whole or part, monies will be returned to the applicant without interest.
Pursuant to anti-money laundering laws and regulations with which the Company must comply in the UK, any of the Company and its agents, including the Administrator, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent, the Investment Adviser, Numis and Kempen & Co may require evidence in connection with any application for New Ordinary Shares, including further identification of the applicant(s), before any New Ordinary Shares are issued.
Each of the Company and its agents, including the Administrator, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent, the AIFM, Numis and Kempen & Co reserves the right to request such information as is necessary to verify the identity of a Shareholder or prospective Shareholder and (if any) the underlying beneficial owner or prospective beneficial owner of a Shareholder's Ordinary Shares. In the event of delay or failure by the Shareholder or prospective Shareholder to produce any information required for verification purposes, the Board, in consultation with any of the Company's agents, including the Administrator, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent, the AIFM, Numis and Kempen & Co may refuse to accept an application or subscription for New Ordinary Shares, or may refuse the transfer of New Ordinary Shares held by any such Shareholder.
The New Ordinary Shares will be "qualifying investments" for the stocks and shares component of an ISA and the Board will use its reasonable endeavours to manage the affairs of the Company so as to enable this status to be maintained. Save where an account manager is acquiring New Ordinary Shares using available funds in an existing ISA, an investment in New Ordinary Shares by means of an ISA is subject to the usual annual subscription limits applicable to new investments into an ISA (for the tax year 2020-2021 an individual may invest £20,000 worth of stocks and shares in a stocks and shares ISA).
Sums received by a Shareholder on a disposal of New Ordinary Shares will not count towards the Shareholder's annual limit but a disposal of New Ordinary Shares held in an ISA will not serve to make available again any part of the annual subscription limit that has already been used by the Shareholder in that tax year. Individuals wishing to invest in New Ordinary Shares through an ISA should contact their professional advisers regarding their eligibility.
New Ordinary Shares allotted under the Offer for Subscription will be eligible for inclusion in an ISA, subject to the applicable subscription limits to new investments into an ISA, as set out above, being complied with.
New Ordinary Shares allotted under the Placing are not eligible for inclusion in an ISA.
New Ordinary Shares acquired by an account manager by purchase in the secondary market, subject to applicable subscription limits, as set out above, will be eligible for inclusion in an ISA.
UK small self-administered schemes and self-invested personal pensions
The New Ordinary Shares will be eligible for inclusion in a UK SSAS or a UK SIPP.
The Company has authority to issue up to 500 million Ordinary Shares on a non-pre-emptive basis pursuant to one or more Subsequent Placings under the Placing Programme. The Placing Programme is flexible and may have a number of closing dates in order to provide the Company with the ability to issue Ordinary Shares over a period of time. The Placing Programme is intended to satisfy market demand for Ordinary Shares and to raise further money after the Issue to increase the size of the Company and to provide cash pursuant to which the Company can invest in accordance with the Investment Policy.
It is intended that new Ordinary Shares will be allocated so that applications from existing Shareholders are given priority over other applicants, with a view to existing Shareholders being allocated such percentage of new Ordinary Shares as is as close as possible to their existing percentage holding of Ordinary Shares. Existing Shareholders will not, however, be entitled to any minimum allocation of new Ordinary Shares in the Placing Programme or any particular Subsequent Placing and there will be no guarantee that existing Shareholders wishing to participate in the Placing Programme will receive all or some of the new Ordinary Shares for which they have applied.
The Placing Programme will open on 13 October 2020 and will close on 16 September 2021 (or any earlier date on which it is fully subscribed, or otherwise at the discretion of the Directors). The terms and conditions that apply to the purchase of Ordinary Shares under each Subsequent Placing are set out in Part XIII of this Prospectus. The Company will have the flexibility to issue Ordinary Shares on a nonpre-emptive basis where there appears to be reasonable demand for Ordinary Shares in the market, for example if the Ordinary Shares trade at a premium to the Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share.
The issue of Ordinary Shares under the Placing Programme is at the discretion of the Directors. Subsequent Placings may take place at any time following Admission of the New Ordinary Shares on or around 13 October 2020 and prior to the 16 September 2021 (or any earlier date on which it is fully subscribed, or otherwise at the discretion of the Directors). An announcement of each Subsequent Placing under the Placing Programme will be released via a Regulatory Information Service, including details of the number of Ordinary Shares to be issued and the Placing Programme Price for the Subsequent Placing. There is no minimum subscription.
Neither the Placing Programme nor any Subsequent Placing is being underwritten and, as at the date of this document, the actual number of Ordinary Shares to be issued under the Placing Programme is not known. The maximum number of Ordinary Shares available under the Placing Programme should not be taken as an indication of the final number of Ordinary Shares to be issued. Where new Ordinary Shares are issued pursuant to a Subsequent Placing, the total assets of the Company will increase by that number of Ordinary Shares multiplied by the relevant Placing Programme Price less the expenses of such Subsequent Placing. The net proceeds of any Subsequent Placing under the Placing Programme are dependent, inter alia, on, the level of subscriptions received, the price at which such Ordinary Shares are issued and the costs of the Subsequent Placing.
Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to each Subsequent Placing will rank pari passu with the Ordinary Shares then in issue (save for any dividends or other distributions declared, made or paid on the Ordinary Shares by reference to a record date prior to the allotment and issue of the relevant Ordinary Shares).
The Placing Programme will be suspended at any time when the Company is unable to issue Ordinary Shares under any statutory provision or other regulation applicable to the Company or otherwise at the Directors' discretion. The Placing Programme may resume when such conditions cease to exist.
Each issue of Ordinary Shares pursuant to a Subsequent Placing under the Placing Programme is conditional, inter alia, on:
The minimum price at which Ordinary Shares will be issued pursuant to the Placing Programme, which will be in Euros, will be equal to the prevailing published Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share at the time of issue together with a premium to at least cover the costs and expenses of the relevant Subsequent Placing (including, without limitation, any placing commissions).
In accordance with Chapter 15 of the Listing Rules, the Company may not issue Ordinary Shares on a nonpre-emptive basis at a price below the prevailing published Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share without Shareholder approval.
The Placing Programme Price will be announced via a Regulatory Information Service as soon as practicable in conjunction with each Subsequent Placing.
The Directors believe that the issue of Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Placing Programme should yield the following principal benefits:
The costs and expenses of the Company relating to the Placing Programme are those that arise from, or are incidental to, the issue of Ordinary Shares pursuant to Subsequent Placings. These include the fees payable in relation to each Future Admission, including listing and admission fees, as well as fees and commissions due under the Placing Agreement and any other applicable expenses in relation to the Placing Programme.
The costs and expenses of issuing Ordinary Shares pursuant to any Subsequent Placing will be covered by issuing such Ordinary Shares at the prevailing published Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share at the time of issue together with a premium to at least cover the costs and expenses of the relevant Subsequent Placing of Ordinary Shares (including, without limitation, any placing commissions). No fees or expenses in relation to a Subsequent Placing will be charged to investors and the Company will bear these costs including any abort costs if that Subsequent Placing does not proceed.
The Company, the Investment Adviser, Numis and Kempen & Co have entered into the Placing Agreement, pursuant to which Numis and Kempen & Co have agreed, subject to certain conditions, to use their respective reasonable endeavours severally (and not jointly or jointly and severally) to procure subscribers for the Ordinary Shares made available in the Placing Programme. Neither the Placing Programme nor any Subsequent Placing under it is underwritten.
The terms and conditions of the Placing Programme and each Subsequent Placing under it are set out in Part XIII of this Prospectus. These terms and conditions should be read carefully before a commitment is
Further details of the terms of the Placing Agreement are detailed in paragraphs 10.1 of Part X of this Prospectus.
In circumstances in which the conditions to a Subsequent Placing are not fully met, the relevant issue of Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Placing Programme will not take place.
If 500 million Ordinary Shares were to be issued pursuant to Subsequent Placings, and assuming the Issue had been subscribed as to 145 million New Ordinary Shares, there would be a dilution of approximately 77 per cent. in Shareholders' voting control of the Company immediately after the Subsequent Placings assuming that the Shareholders did not participate in the Subsequent Placings. However, it is not anticipated that there would be any dilution in the Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share as a result of the Placing Programme.
The Directors intend to use the net proceeds of any Subsequent Placing under the Placing Programme to acquire Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments in accordance with the Company's investment objective and Investment Policy and for working capital purposes.
The results of any Subsequent Placing will be announced via a Regulatory Information Service.
Subject to those matters on which any Subsequent Placing is conditional, the Board, with the consent of Numis and Kempen & Co, may bring forward or postpone the closing date for the Subsequent Placing.
CREST accounts will be credited on the date of the Future Admission in relation to the relevant Subsequent Placing and it is expected that, where Shareholders have requested them, certificates in respect of the Ordinary Shares to be held in certificated form will be dispatched within 14 business days of such Future Admission. Pending receipt by Shareholders of definitive share certificates, if issued, the Registrar will certify any instruments of transfer against the register of members.
The ISIN and SEDOLs for the Ordinary Shares are set out below:
| Euro Quote | Sterling Quote | |
|---|---|---|
| ISIN | GB00BK6RLF66 | GB00BK6RLF66 |
| SEDOL | BK6RLF6 | BJMXQK1 |
| Ticker | AERI | AERS |
Applicants may not withdraw their applications for New Ordinary Shares save under Article 23 of the Prospectus Regulation after the publication of a supplementary prospectus prior to the closing date for applications and subject to the terms and conditions of the Placing and the Placing Programme set out in Part XIII.
The basis of allocation of Ordinary Shares shall be determined by the Company following consultation with Numis, Kempen & Co and the Investment Adviser. If subscriptions under any Subsequent Placing exceed the maximum number of Ordinary Shares available under that Subsequent Placing, the Company will scale back subscriptions at its discretion (following consultation with Numis, Kempen & Co and the Investment Adviser). In such circumstances, it is intended that new Ordinary Shares will be allocated so that applications from existing Shareholders are given priority over other applicants, with a view to existing Shareholders being allocated such percentage of new Ordinary Shares as is as close as possible to their existing percentage holding of Ordinary Shares. Existing Shareholders will not, however, be entitled to any minimum allocation of new Ordinary Shares in the Placing Programme and there will be no guarantee that existing Shareholders wishing to participate in the Placing Programme will receive all or some of the new Ordinary Shares for which they have applied.
The attention of persons resident outside the UK is drawn to the notices to investors set out on pages 131 to 134 of this Prospectus which set out restrictions on the holding of Ordinary Shares by such persons in certain jurisdictions.
In particular, investors should note that the Ordinary Shares have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act or with any securities regulatory authority of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States. Accordingly, the Ordinary Shares may not be offered, sold, pledged or otherwise transferred or delivered, directly or indirectly, in, into or within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, any U.S. Persons.
CREST is a paperless settlement procedure enabling securities to be transferred from one person's CREST account to another without the need to use share certificates or written instruments of transfer. Accordingly, settlement of transactions in the Ordinary Shares following a Future Admission may take place within the CREST system if any Shareholder so wishes (provided that the Ordinary Shares are not in certificated form).
CREST is a voluntary system and, upon the specific request of a Shareholder, the Ordinary Shares of that Shareholder which are being held under the CREST system may be exchanged, in whole or in part, for share certificates.
If a Shareholder or transferee requests Ordinary Shares to be issued in certificated form, a share certificate will be despatched either to them or their nominated agent (at their own risk) within 21 days of completion of the registration process or transfer, as the case may be, of the Ordinary Shares. Shareholders who are non-U.S. Persons holding definitive certificates may elect at a later date to hold their Ordinary Shares through CREST in uncertificated form provided that they surrender their definitive certificates.
The Placing Programme may have a number of closing dates in order to provide the Company with the ability to issue Ordinary Shares over the duration of the Placing Programme. Ordinary Shares may be issued under the Placing Programme from 13 October 2020 until 16 September 2021.
Applications will be made to the FCA and the London Stock Exchange for all of the Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to each Subsequent Placing under the Placing Programme to be admitted to the premium segment of the Official List and to trading on the premium segment of the London Stock Exchange's main market. It is expected that any Future Admissions pursuant to Subsequent Placings will become effective and dealings will commence between 13 October 2020 and 16 September 2021. All Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to the Placing Programme will be allotted conditionally on the relevant Future Admission occurring.
Payment for the Ordinary Shares to be acquired under any Subsequent Placing should be made in accordance with settlement instructions provided to investors by Numis and Kempen & Co. To the extent that any application or subscription for Ordinary Shares is rejected in whole or part, monies will be returned to the applicant without interest.
Pursuant to anti-money laundering laws and regulations with which the Company must comply in the UK, any of the Company and its agents, including the Administrator, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent, the Investment Adviser, Numis and Kempen & Co may require evidence in connection with any application for Ordinary Shares, including further identification of the applicant(s), before any Ordinary Shares are issued.
Each of the Company and its agents, including the Administrator, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent, the AIFM, Numis and Kempen & Co reserves the right to request such information as is necessary to verify the identity of a Shareholder or prospective Shareholder and (if any) the underlying beneficial owner or prospective beneficial owner of a Shareholder's Ordinary Shares. In the event of delay or failure by the Shareholder or prospective Shareholder to produce any information required for verification purposes, the Board, in consultation with any of the Company's agents, including the Administrator, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent, the AIFM, Numis and Kempen & Co, may refuse to accept a subscription for Ordinary Shares, or may refuse the transfer of Ordinary Shares held by any such Shareholder.
General
The Ordinary Shares will be "qualifying investments" for the stocks and shares component of an ISA and the Board will use its reasonable endeavours to manage the affairs of the Company so as to enable this status to be maintained. Save where an account manager is acquiring Ordinary Shares using available funds in an existing ISA, an investment in Ordinary Shares by means of an ISA is subject to the usual annual subscription limits applicable to new investments into an ISA (for the tax year 2020-2021 an individual may invest £20,000 worth of stocks and shares in a stocks and shares ISA).
Sums received by a Shareholder on a disposal of Ordinary Shares will not count towards the Shareholder's annual limit but a disposal of Ordinary Shares held in an ISA will not serve to make available again any part of the annual subscription limit that has already been used by the Shareholder in that tax year. Individuals wishing to invest in Ordinary Shares through an ISA should contact their professional advisers regarding their eligibility.
Ordinary Shares allotted under the Placing Programme are not eligible for inclusion in an ISA.
Ordinary Shares acquired by an account manager by purchase in the secondary market, subject to applicable subscription limits, as set out above, will be eligible for inclusion in an ISA.
UK small self-administered schemes and self-invested personal pensions
The Ordinary Shares will be eligible for inclusion in a UK SSAS or a UK SIPP.
Prospective investors should consult their professional advisers concerning the possible tax consequences of their subscribing for, purchasing, holding or selling Ordinary Shares. The following summary of the principal United Kingdom tax consequences applicable to the Company and its Shareholders is based upon interpretations of existing laws in effect on the date of this document and no assurance can be given that courts or fiscal authorities responsible for the administration of such laws will agree with the interpretations or that changes in such laws will not occur. The tax and other matters described in this document are not intended as legal or tax advice. Each prospective investor must consult its own advisers with regard to the tax consequences of an investment in Ordinary Shares. None of the Company, the Directors, Numis, Kempen & Co, the Investment Adviser or any of their respective affiliates or agents accepts any responsibility for providing tax advice to any prospective investor.
The information below, which relates only to United Kingdom taxation, summarises the advice received by the Board in so far as applicable to the Company and to persons who are resident in the United Kingdom for taxation purposes and who hold Ordinary Shares as an investment. It is based on current United Kingdom tax law and published practice, respectively, which law or practice is, in principle, subject to any subsequent changes therein (potentially with retrospective effect). Certain Shareholders, including but not limited to dealers in securities, collective investment schemes, insurance companies and persons acquiring their Ordinary Shares in connection with their employment may be taxed differently and are not considered. The tax consequences for each Shareholder investing in the Company may depend upon the Shareholder's own tax position and upon the relevant laws of any jurisdiction to which the Shareholder is subject.
It is the intention of the Directors to conduct the affairs of the Company so that the Company satisfies and continues to satisfy the conditions necessary for it to be approved by HMRC as an investment trust under sections 1158 to 1159 of the CTA 2010. However, the Directors cannot guarantee that this approval will be maintained. One of the conditions for a company to qualify as an investment trust is that it is not a close company. The Directors intend that the Company should not be a close company immediately following Admission. In respect of each accounting period for which the Company continues to be approved by HMRC as an investment trust the Company will be exempt from UK taxation on its capital gains and capital profits from creditor loan relationships. The Company will, however, (subject to what follows) be liable to UK corporation tax on its income in the normal way.
An investment trust approved under sections 1158 to 1159 of the CTA 2010, or one that intends to seek such approval, is able to elect to take advantage of modified UK tax treatment in respect of its "qualifying interest income" for an accounting period (referred to here as the "streaming" regime). Under regulations made pursuant to the Finance Act 2009, the Company may, if it so chooses, designate as an "interest distribution" all or part of the amount it distributes to Shareholders as dividends in respect of the accounting period, to the extent that it has "qualifying interest income" for the accounting period. Were the Company to designate any dividend it pays in this manner, it would be able to deduct such interest distributions from its taxable interest income in calculating its taxable profit for the relevant accounting period.
The Company should, in practice, be exempt from UK corporation tax on any dividend income received, provided that such dividends (whether from UK or non-UK companies) fall within one of the "exempt classes" in Part 9A of the CTA 2009.
(i) Non-interest distributions
In the event that the Directors do not elect for the "streaming" regime to apply to any dividends paid by the Company, the following paragraph summarises the expected UK tax treatment for individual Shareholders who receive dividends from the Company. The following paragraph would also apply to any parts of dividends not treated as "interest distributions" were the Directors to elect for the "streaming" regime to apply.
Each individual who is resident in the UK for tax purposes is entitled to an annual tax free dividend allowance of £2,000 (tax year 2020/21). Dividends received in excess of this threshold will be taxed, for the fiscal year 2020/21 at 7.5 per cent. (basic rate taxpayers), 32.5 per cent. (higher rate taxpayers) and 38.1 per cent. (additional rate taxpayers). Each individual who is resident in the UK for tax purposes is liable to pay UK income tax on dividend received at the relevant rate depending on the Shareholder's level of income, less any available allowances. No withholding tax will be applied to "non-interest distributions" made by the Company.
Where the Directors elect to apply the "streaming" regime to any dividends paid by the Company, were the Company to designate any dividends paid as an "interest distribution", a UK resident Shareholder in receipt of such a dividend would be treated as though they had received a payment of interest. Such a Shareholder would be subject to UK income tax at the current rates of 20 per cent, 40 per cent. or 45 per cent, depending on the level of the Shareholder's income less any available allowances. No withholding tax will be applied to "interest distributions" made by the Company.
Each UK resident individual who is a basic rate taxpayer is entitled to a Personal Saving Allowance which exempts the first £1,000 of savings income (including distributions deemed as "interest distributions" from an Investment Trust Company). The exempt amount is reduced to £500 for higher rate taxpayers. Additional rate taxpayers do not receive an allowance.
UK resident corporate Shareholders may be subject to corporation tax on dividends paid by the Company unless they fall within one of the exempt classes in Part 9A of CTA 2009. Where, however, the Directors elect for the "streaming" rules to apply, and such corporate Shareholders receive dividends designated by the Company as "interest distributions", they would be subject to corporation tax in the same way as a creditor in a loan relationship.
Individual Shareholders who are resident in the UK for tax purposes will generally be subject to capital gains tax in respect of any gain arising on a disposal of their Ordinary Shares. Each such individual has an annual exemption, such that capital gains tax is chargeable only on gains arising from all sources during the tax year in excess of this figure. The annual exemption is £12,300 for the tax year 2020/2021. Capital gains tax chargeable will be at the current rate of 10 per cent. (for basic rate taxpayers) and 20 per cent. (for higher and additional rate taxpayers) during the tax year 2020/2021.
Shareholders who are individuals and who are temporarily non-resident in the UK for tax purposes may, under anti-avoidance legislation, still be liable to UK tax on any capital gain realised (subject to any available exemption or relief).
Corporate Shareholders who are resident in the UK for tax purposes will generally be subject to corporation tax (currently at a rate of 19 per cent.) on chargeable gains arising on a disposal of their Ordinary Shares.
No UK stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax should arise on the issue of new Ordinary Shares in the Company. Transfers on sale of Ordinary Shares will generally be subject to UK stamp duty at the rate of 0.5 per cent. of the consideration given for the transfer. The purchaser normally pays the stamp duty. However, an exemption from stamp duty will be available on an instrument transferring existing Ordinary Shares where the amount or value of the consideration is £1,000 or less, and it is certified on the instrument that the transaction effected by the instrument does not form part of a larger transaction or series of transactions for which the aggregate consideration exceeds £1,000.
An agreement to transfer Ordinary Shares will normally give rise to a charge to stamp duty reserve tax
("SDRT") at the rate of 0.5 per cent. of the amount or value of the consideration payable for the transfer. If a duly stamped transfer in respect of the agreement is produced within six years of the date on which the agreement is made (or, if the agreement is conditional, the date on which the agreement becomes unconditional) any SDRT paid is repayable, generally with interest, and otherwise the SDRT charge is cancelled. SDRT is, in general, payable by the purchaser.
Paperless transfers of Ordinary Shares within the CREST system will generally be liable to SDRT, rather than stamp duty, at the rate of 0.5 per cent. of the amount or value of the consideration payable. CREST is obliged to collect SDRT on relevant transactions settled within the CREST system. Deposits of Ordinary Shares into CREST will not generally be subject to SDRT, unless the transfer into CREST is itself for consideration in the form of money or money's worth.
Ordinary Shares acquired by a UK resident individual Shareholder in the Offer for Subscription or on the secondary market (but not the Placing or any Subsequent Placing) should be eligible to be held in a stocks and shares ISA, subject to applicable annual subscription limits (£20,000 in the tax year 2020-2021).
Investments held in ISAs will be free of UK tax on both capital gains and income. The opportunity to invest in shares through an ISA is restricted to certain UK resident individuals aged 18 or over. Junior ISAs are available to children under the age of 18 who are resident in the UK subject to the annual allowance of £9,000 for the 2020/2021 tax year. Sums received by a Shareholder on a disposal of Ordinary Shares would not count towards the Shareholder's annual limit; but a disposal of Ordinary Shares held in an ISA will not serve to make available again any part of the annual subscription limit that has already been used by the Shareholder in that tax year.
The Directors have been advised that the Ordinary Shares should be eligible for inclusion in a SIPP or a SSAS, subject to the discretion of the trustees of the SIPP or the SSAS, as the case may be.
The UK has entered into international agreements with a number of jurisdictions which provide for the exchange of information in order to combat tax evasion and improve tax compliance. These include, but are not limited to, an Inter-governmental Agreement with the U.S. in relation to FATCA and the Common Reporting Standard developed by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development and the EU Directive on Administrative Cooperation in Tax Matters as implemented in the UK. In connection with such agreements and arrangements the Company may, among other things, be required to collect and report to HMRC certain personal information regarding Shareholders and other account holders of the Company and HMRC may pass this information on to the authorities in other jurisdictions. Shareholders and other account holders agree to furnish any information and documents the Company may from time to time request.
| Subsidiary entity name | Effective ownership % |
Investment | Country of incorporation |
Registered address |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tesseract Holdings Limited | 100.0 | Holdco | United Kingdom | 1st Floor, Senator House, 85 Queen Victoria Street, London, United Kingdom, EC4V 4AB |
| Holmen II Wind Park ApS | 100.0 | Holmen II | Denmark | Gyngemose Parkvej 50, 2860 Søborg, Denmark |
| Aalto Wind No 2 Ltd. Oy | 100.0 | Olhava | Finland | Oy, Bulevardi 1, 6th floor, 00100 Helsinki, Finland |
| Svindbaek Vindkraft Holdco ApS* * |
100.0 | Svindbaek | Denmark | Gyngemose Parkvej 50, 2860 Søborg, Denmark |
| Svindbaek Vindkraft GP ApS* * |
100.0 | Svindbaek | Denmark | Gyngemose Parkvej 50, 2860 Søborg, Denmark |
| Oyfjellet Wind HoldCo S.à.r.l |
13.7 | The Rock | Luxembourg | Am Scheerleck 23, 6868 Wecker, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg |
marketing the Company to professional investors within the Republic of Ireland.
The Directors are:
| Name | Function | Age | Date of Appointment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ian Nolan | Chair | 57 | 8 April 2019 |
| David MacLellan | Director (Audit and Risk Committee Chair) |
61 | 8 April 2019 |
| Kenneth MacRitchie | Director (Remuneration and Nomination Committee Chair) |
64 | 8 April 2019 |
| Patricia Rodrigues | Director | 45 | 17 April 2019 |
all care of the Company's registered office at 1st Floor, Senator House, 85 Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4V 4AB.
| Name | Number of Ordinary Shares | Percentage of voting rights |
|---|---|---|
| BlackRock Inc | 32,189,996 | 16.61 |
| CCLA Investment Management Limited |
20,436,224 | 10.55 |
| Standard Life Aberdeen plc | 12,300,681 | 6.35 |
| Stichting Juridisch Eigendom Privium Sustainable Impact Fund |
9,809,523 | 5.06 |
| City Asset Management Plc | 7,932,980 | 4.09 |
arrangements in force whereby future dividends are waived or agreed to be waived.
5.1 The Company is of the opinion that the working capital available to the Group is sufficient for its present requirements, that is, for at least the next 12 months following the date of this document.
6.1 The following table shows the Company's capitalisation as at 30 June 2020 and gross indebtedness as at 30 June 2020:
| Total current debt | As at 30 June 2020 (€) |
|---|---|
| Guaranteed | Nil |
| Secured | Nil |
| Unguaranteed/unsecured | Nil |
| Total non-current debt (excluding current | As at 30 June 2020 (€) |
| portion of long-term debt) | |
| Guaranteed | Nil |
| Secured | Nil |
| Unguaranteed/unsecured | Nil |
| Shareholder's equity | As at 30 June 2020 (€) |
| Share capital** | 41,810,000 |
| Special reserve | 145,903,000 |
| Other reserves | 1,828,000 |
6.2 The following table shows the Company's net indebtedness as at 30 June 2020:
| Net Indebtedness | As at 30 June 2020 (€) |
|---|---|
| A. Cash | 41,548,000 |
| B. Cash equivalent | Nil |
| C. Trading securities | Nil |
| D. Liquidity (A) + (B)+(C) | 41,548,000 |
| E. Current Financial Receivable | 2,953,000 |
| F. Current bank debt | Nil |
| G. Current portion of non-current debt | Nil |
| H. Other current financial debt | Nil |
| I. Current Financial Debt (F)+(G)+(H) | Nil |
| J. Net Current Financial Indebtedness (I)-(E)-(D) | (44,501,000) |
| K. Non-current bank loans | Nil |
| L. Bonds issued | Nil |
| M. Other non-current loans | Nil |
| N. Non-current Financial Indebtedness (K)+(L)+(M) | Nil |
| O. Net Financial Indebtedness (J)+(N) | (44,501,000) |
| ** this includes share capital and share premium |
7.1 As at the date of this document, insofar as is known to the Company, the interests of each Director (including any connected person, the existence of which is known to, or could with reasonable diligence be ascertained by, that Director whether or not held through another party) in the share capital of the Company are as follows:
| % of issued Ordinary Share | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Director | Ordinary Shares | capital | |
| Ian Nolan | 100,000 | 0.05 | |
| David MacLellan | 75,000 | 0.04 | |
| Kenneth MacRitchie | 50,000 | 0.03 | |
| Patricia Rodrigues | 50,000 | 0.03 |
* Note: these figures include Ordinary Shares held by family members of the relevant Directors.
In addition to their directorships of the Company, the Directors are or have been members of the administrative, management or supervisory bodies or partners of the following companies or partnerships, at any time in the previous five years:
| Ian Nolan | |
|---|---|
| Present directorships and partnerships | Past directorships and partnerships |
| Abinger Green Services Limited | 2-B Energy Holding BV |
| BE Shark Holding ApS | Advizzo Limited |
| Circularity Capital LLP | Albion Community Power plc |
| Shark Solutions ApS | Greensphere Advisors Limited |
| Switchee Limited | Greensphere Investments Limited |
| Winnow Holdings Limited | Steama Co Limited |
| Zig Zag Global Limited | That Device Company Limited |
| David MacLellan | |
| Present directorships and partnerships | Past directorships and partnerships |
| Denholm Industrial Group Limited | Granite One Hundred Holdings Limited |
| DJR Acquisitions Limited | Havelock Europa PLC |
| J&J Denholm Limited | INFM Services Limited |
| RJD Burgess GP Limited | John Laing Infrastructure Fund Limited |
| RJD Burgess GP (Scotland) Limited | Maven Income and Growth VCT 2 PLC |
| David MacLellan | |
|---|---|
| Present directorships and partnerships | Past directorships and partnerships |
| RJD General Partner (Scotland) II Limited | Pyrenees Infrastructure Limited |
| RJD General Partner II Limited | Pyrenees Infrastructure 1 Limited |
| RJD General Partner III Limited | Pyrenees Infrastructure 2 Limited |
| RJD GP III (Scotland) Limited | RLPE Founder Partner Limited |
| RJD Group Limited | RLPE General Partner Limited |
| RJD Partners Limited | |
| Stone Technologies Group Limited | |
| Kenneth MacRitchie | |
| Present directorships and partnerships | Past directorships and partnerships |
| Justice Links Limited | Anoa Capital S.p.A. |
| Longaswim Limited | Christians in Sport |
| Oxford Schools Chaplaincy | Oxford Analytica Limited |
| St Edward's School Limited | |
| St Edward's School International Limited | |
| Thames Valley Partnership | |
| The North Wall Trust Limited | |
| Patricia Rodrigues Present directorships and partnerships |
Past directorships and partnerships |
Lemon Tree (UK) Holdings Limited Robustadventure Lda
10.1 The following contracts (not being contracts entered into in the ordinary course of business) have been entered into by the Company since incorporation of the Company and are, or may be, material. There are no other contracts entered into by the Company which include an obligation or entitlement which is material to the Company as at the date of this Prospectus.
2019 Placing Agreement
The AIFM is entitled to:
An additional fee will be agreed between the AIFM and Company in the event that the AIFM is requested by or on behalf of the Company to undertake additional risk and duties outside the scope of the AIFM Agreement.
The investment advisory agreement dated 10 May 2019 between the AIFM and the Investment Adviser (the "Investment Advisory Agreement") pursuant to which the AIFM has appointed the Investment Adviser to provide certain investment advisory services to the Company, including sourcing potential opportunities in which the Company may invest, as well as on-going monitoring of the Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments.
Although the Company is not a party to the Investment Advisory Agreement, the Company will benefit from the advisory services provided to the AIFM in respect of the Company and its Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments.
The Investment Advisory Agreement will continue in force for an initial period of four years from the date of the IPO Admission. The Investment Advisory Agreement will continue thereafter on a rolling basis and may be terminated following the initial period on 12 months' notice in writing. The Investment Advisory Agreement may be immediately terminated by either party in certain circumstances such as a material breach which is not remedied or liquidation of either party.
The AIFM has also agreed to indemnify the Investment Adviser for losses that the Investment Adviser may incur in the performance of its duties pursuant to the Investment Advisory Agreement that are not attributable to the fraud, gross negligence or wilful default of, the Investment Adviser determined by a court of competent jurisdiction.
Under the Investment Advisory Agreement, the following fee is payable to the Investment Adviser:
The Investment Adviser is also entitled to be reimbursed for out of pocket expenses under the Investment Advisory Agreement.
No performance fee will be payable to the Investment Adviser.
The Investment Advisory Agreement is governed by English law.
Supplemental Agreement
10.15 The Company, the AIFM and the Investment Adviser have entered into an agreement
supplementing the AIFM Agreement and the Investment Advisory Agreement (the "Supplemental Agreement") dated 10 May 2019.
Registrar.
10.26 The Registrar Agreement is terminable, inter alia, (a) upon 6 months' written notice by either party; (b) upon service of written notice if the other party commits a material breach of its obligations under the Registrar Agreement which that party has failed to remedy within 21 days of receipt of a written notice to do so from the first party; or (c) upon service of written notice if a resolution is passed or an order made for the winding up, dissolution or administration of the other party.
10.30 The trade mark licence dated 29 April 2019 between the Company and the Investment Adviser (the "Trade Mark Licence") under which the Investment Adviser has granted the Company a licence to use the word trade mark "Aquila" for certain purposes including its company name. The deed shall continue for so long as the Investment Adviser is appointed as the investment adviser by the AIFM. If the appointment is terminated then the sublicence shall automatically terminate.
the offeror and, depending on the circumstances, his concert parties, would be required (except with the consent of the Panel on Takeovers and Mergers) to make a cash offer for the outstanding shares in the Company at a price not less than the highest price paid for any interests in the Ordinary Shares by the offeror or his concert parties during the previous 12 months.
not less than 90 per cent. of the shares (in value and by voting rights) to which the offer relates, any holder of shares to which the offer relates who has not accepted the offer may require the offeror to acquire his shares on the same terms as the takeover offer.
11.2.3 The offeror would be required to give any holder of shares notice of his right to be bought out within one month of that right arising. Sell-out rights cannot be exercised after the end of the period of three months from the last date on which the offer can be accepted or, if later, three months from the date on which the notice is served on the holder of shares notifying them of their sell-out rights. If a holder of shares exercises his/her rights, the offeror is bound to acquire those shares on the terms of the takeover offer or on such other terms as may be agreed.
14.1 Save as disclosed in Part III in relation to The Rock, there have been no governmental, legal or arbitration proceedings (including any such proceedings which are pending or threatened of which the Company is aware), during the 12 month period prior to the date of publication of this document, which may have, or have had in the recent past, a significant effect on the Group's financial position or profitability.
16.1 There has been no significant change in the financial performance or financial position of the Group since 30 June 2020, being the date to which the latest unaudited interim reports of the Company were drawn up.
17.1 Where information contained in this Prospectus has been sourced from a third party, the Company confirms that such information has been accurately reproduced and that as far as the Company is aware and is able to ascertain from information published by that third party, no facts have been omitted which would render the reproduced information inaccurate or misleading.
Dated 17 September 2020
Audited financial information relating to the Company for the financial period from 8 April 2019 to 31 December 2019 is incorporated into this document by reference to the Annual Report as set out in Part XII of this Prospectus.
The unaudited interim report relating to the Company for the period from 1 January 2020 to 30 June 2020 is incorporated into this document by reference to the Interim Results as set out in Part XII of this Prospectus.
The following information, available free of charge in electronic format on the Company's website at www.aquila-european-renewables-income-fund.com or in printed format from the Company's registered address at 1st Floor, Senator House, 85 Queen Victoria Street, London, EC4V 4AB, is incorporated by reference in the Prospectus.
| Reference Document |
Information incorporated by reference | Page number in reference document |
|---|---|---|
| Annual Report | Chairman's Statement | 4-5 |
| Investment Adviser's Report | 6-20 | |
| Directors' Report | 37-41 | |
| Directors' Remuneration Report | 46-49 | |
| Report of the Audit Committee | 50-51 | |
| Independent Auditor's report | 53-58 | |
| Statement of Comprehensive Income | 59 | |
| Statement of Financial Position | 60 | |
| Statement of Changes in Equity | 61 | |
| Statement of Cash Flows | 62 | |
| Notes to the Financial Statements | 63-78 | |
| Interim Results | Chairman's Statement | 4-6 |
| Investment Adviser's Report | 7-15 | |
| Interim Management Report | 18 | |
| Independent Review Report to Aquila European Renewables Income Fund plc |
20-21 | |
| Condensed Statement of Comprehensive Income |
22 | |
| Condensed Statement of Financial Position | 23 | |
| Condensed Statement of Changes in Equity | 24 | |
| Condensed Statement of Cash Flows | 25 | |
| Notes to the Financial Statements | 26-33 | |
| Articles | Share Capital | 6-13 |
| Share Certificates | 14-15 | |
| Calls on Shares | 16-17 | |
| Forfeiture of Shares | 17-19 | |
| Transfer of Shares | 19-22 | |
| Transmission of Shares | 22-23 | |
| Alteration of Share Capital | 24-27 | |
| Proceedings at General Meetings | 27-29 | |
| Voting and Polls | 30-35 | |
| Dividends and Other Payments | 53-58 |
Where these documents make reference to other documents, such other documents are not incorporated into and do not form part of the Prospectus. Where parts of these documents are not incorporated by reference, these parts are either not relevant for an investor or are covered elsewhere in the Prospectus. Investors should note that statements regarding current circumstances and forward-looking statements made in the documents referred to above speak as at the date of the relevant document and therefore such statements do not necessarily remain up-to-date as at the date of this Prospectus
Each investor which confirms its agreement to subscribe for New Ordinary Shares under the Placing and/ or any Subsequent Placing pursuant to the Placing Programme to Numis and/or Kempen & Co (for the purposes of this Part, a "Placee") will be bound by these terms and conditions and will be deemed to have accepted them.
Each of the Company, Numis and/or Kempen & Co, as applicable, may require a Placee to agree to such further terms and/or conditions and/or give such additional warranties and/or representations as it (in its absolute discretion) sees fit and/or may require any such Placee to execute a separate placing letter (for the purposes of this Part, a "Placing Letter"). The terms of this Part XIII will, where applicable, be deemed to be incorporated into that Placing Letter.
In this Part XIII, unless otherwise expressly stated "Placing Shares" means (a) the New Ordinary Shares offered and/or to be issued pursuant to the Placing and (b) the Ordinary Shares offered and/or to be issued in connection with any Subsequent Placing, or either of them as the context may require.
Conditional on, amongst other things:
a Placee agrees to become a member of the Company and agrees to subscribe for those Placing Shares allocated to it by Numis and/or Kempen & Co at the Issue Price or the relevant Placing Programme Price (as the case may be). To the fullest extent permitted by law, each Placee acknowledges and agrees that it will not be entitled to exercise any remedy of rescission at any time. This does not affect any other rights the Placee may have.
If the Minimum Net Proceeds (or such lesser amount as the Company, Numis and Kempen & Co may agree) are not raised in the Issue, the Placing will lapse and all proceeds will be returned to Placees without interest and at each Placee's risk.
Multiple applications or suspected multiple applications on behalf of a single investor are liable to be rejected.
Fractions of Placing Shares will not be issued.
Numis and/or Kempen & Co may, following consultation with the Company, terminate the Placing
Agreement in accordance with its terms prior to Admission, in respect of the Issue, and prior to any Future Admission, in respect of a Subsequent Placing and/or the Placing Programme.
By participating in the Placing or a Subsequent Placing, each Placee agrees with Numis and Kempen & Co that the exercise by either Numis or Kempen & Co of any right of termination or other discretion under the Placing Agreement shall be within their absolute respective discretion and that Numis and/or Kempen & Co need not make any reference to the Placee in this regard and that to the fullest extent permitted by law neither Numis nor Kempen & Co shall have any liability whatsoever to the Placee in connection with any such exercise.
Each Placee undertakes to pay in full the Issue Price or the relevant Placing Programme Price (as the case may be) for the Placing Shares issued to such Placee in the manner and by the time directed by Numis and/or Kempen & Co. If any Placee fails to pay as so directed and/or by the time required, the relevant Placee's application for Placing Shares shall either be accepted or rejected and the relevant Placee shall be deemed hereby to (a) have appointed Numis and/or Kempen & Co, or any nominee of Numis and/or Kempen & Co, as its agent to use its reasonable endeavours to sell (in one or more transactions) any or all of the Placing Shares allocated to the Placee in respect of which payment shall not have been made as directed, and to (b) indemnify Numis and Kempen & Co and their respective affiliates on demand in respect of any liability for stamp duty and/or stamp duty reserve tax or any other liability whatsoever (including any interest and penalties) arising in respect of any such sale or sales.
No commission will be paid to any such Placees in respect of any Placing Shares.
Settlement of transactions in the Placing Shares following the Issue will take place in CREST but the Company reserves the right in its absolute discretion to require settlement in certificated form if, in its opinion, delivery or settlement is not possible or practicable within the CREST system within the timescales previously notified to the Placee (whether in the Electronic Contract Note (as defined below) or otherwise) or would not be consistent with the regulatory requirements in any Placee's jurisdiction.
By agreeing to subscribe for Placing Shares under the Placing or a Subsequent Placing (as applicable) each Placee which enters into a commitment to subscribe for Placing Shares (for the purposes of this Part, a "Placing Commitment") and will (for itself and for any person(s) procured by it to subscribe for Placing Shares and any nominee(s) for any such person(s)) be deemed to acknowledge, understand, undertake, represent and warrant to each of the Company, the AIFM, the Investment Adviser, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent, Numis and Kempen & Co, that:
terms and subject to the conditions set out in this Part XIII and, in the electronic contract note or electronic placing confirmation, as applicable, referred to in paragraph 5(k) of this Part (for the purposes of this Part, the "Electronic Contract Note" or the "Electronic Placing Confirmation") and the Placing Letter (if any) and the Articles (as amended from time to time);
pay Numis and/or Kempen & Co (as instructed) as agent for the Company. The terms of this Part XIII will be deemed to be incorporated into that Electronic Contract Note or the Electronic Placing Confirmation;
"The Ordinary Shares have not been and will not be registered under the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "U.S. Securities Act"), or any other applicable securities law. By its acceptance of these securities, the purchaser represents that it is not, and is not acting for the account or benefit of, a "U.S. person" as defined in Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act and that any resale of such Ordinary Shares will be made only in an offshore transaction in accordance with Rule 903 or Rule 904 of Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act."
(i) is entitled to subscribe for the Placing Shares under the laws of all relevant jurisdictions;
(ii) has fully observed the laws of all relevant jurisdictions; (iii) has the requisite capacity and authority and is entitled to enter into and perform its obligations as a subscriber for Placing Shares and will honour such obligations; and (iv) has obtained all necessary consents and authorities to enable it to enter into the transactions contemplated hereby and to perform its obligations in relation thereto;
used in Article 5 of the Prospectus Regulation: (i) the Placing Shares acquired by it in the Placing or any Subsequent Placing have not been acquired on behalf of, nor have they been acquired with a view to their offer or resale to, persons in any Relevant State other than qualified investors, as that term is defined in Article 2(e) of the Prospectus Regulation, or in circumstances in which the prior consent of each of Numis and Kempen & Co has been given to the offer or resale; or (ii) where Placing Shares have been acquired by it on behalf of persons in any Relevant State other than qualified investors, the offer of those Placing Shares to it is not treated under the Prospectus Regulation as having been made to such persons;
provision of this paragraph shall survive any resale of the Placing Shares by or on behalf of any such account;
responsibility and will not become clients of Numis or Kempen & Co for the purposes of the rules of the FCA or for the purposes of any other statutory or regulatory provision in the UK or elsewhere;
Kempen & Co and their respective affiliates harmless from any and all costs, claims, liabilities and expenses (including legal fees and expenses) arising out of any breach of the representations, warranties, undertakings, agreements and acknowledgements in this Part XIII.
If Numis, Kempen & Co, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent or the Company or any of their agents request any information about a Placee's agreement to subscribe for Placing Shares under the Placing or any Subsequent Placing, such Placee must promptly disclose it to them and ensure that such information is complete and accurate in all respects.
Each Placee acknowledges that it has been informed that, pursuant to the General Data Protection Regulation 2016/679 (the "DP Legislation") the Company and/or the Registrar and/or the Receiving Agent will, hold personal data (as defined in the DP Legislation) relating to past and present Shareholders. Personal data will be retained on record for a period exceeding seven years after it is no longer used (subject to any limitations on retention periods set out in applicable law). The Registrar and the Receiving Agent will process such personal data at all times in compliance with DP Legislation and shall only process for the purposes set out in the Company's privacy notice (the "Purposes") which is available for consultation on the Company's website at www.aquila-european-renewables-income-fund.com (the "Privacy Notice") which include to:
Where necessary to fulfil the Purposes, the Company will disclose personal data to:
Any sharing of personal data between parties will be carried out in compliance with the DP Legislation and as set out in the Company's Privacy Notice.
becoming registered as a holder of Placing Shares a person becomes a data subject (as defined under DP Legislation). In providing the Registrar and the Receiving Agent with information, the Placee hereby represents and warrants to the Company, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent and the Administrator that: (i) it complies in all material aspects with its data controller obligations under DP Legislation, and in particular, it has notified any data subject of the Purposes for which personal data will be used and by which parties it will be used and it has provided a copy of the Company's Privacy Notice; and (ii) where consent is legally competent and/or required under DP Legislation the Placee has obtained the consent of any data subject to the Company and Registrar, the Receiving Agent, and their respective affiliates and group companies, holding and using their personal data for the Purposes (including the explicit consent of the data subjects for the processing of any sensitive personal data for the Purposes).
Each Placee acknowledges that by submitting personal data to the Registrar, the Receiving Agent (acting for and on behalf of the Company) where the Placee is a natural person he or she has read and understood the terms of the Company's Privacy Notice.
Each Placee acknowledges that by submitting personal data to the Registrar and the Receiving Agent (acting for and on behalf of the Company) where the Placee is not a natural person it represents and warrants that:
Where the Placee acts for or on account of an underlying data subject or otherwise discloses the personal data of an underlying data subject, he/she/it shall, in respect of the personal data it processes in relation to or arising in relation to the Placing or a Subsequent Placing:
The rights and remedies of Numis, Kempen & Co, the Registrar, the Receiving Agent, the AIFM, the Investment Adviser and the Company under these terms and conditions are in addition to any rights and remedies which would otherwise be available to each of them and the exercise or partial exercise of one will not prevent the exercise of others.
On application, if a Placee is an individual, that Placee may be asked to disclose in writing or orally his nationality. If a Placee is a discretionary fund manager, that Placee may be asked to disclose in writing or orally the jurisdiction in which its funds are managed or owned. All documents provided in connection with the Placing, a Subsequent Placing or the Placing Programme will be sent at the Placee's risk. They may be sent by post to such Placee at an address notified by such Placee to Numis or Kempen & Co.
Each Placee agrees to be bound by the Articles (as amended from time to time) once the Placing Shares which the Placee has agreed to subscribe for pursuant to the Placing or any Subsequent Placing have been acquired by the Placee. The contract to subscribe for Placing Shares under the Placing or any Subsequent Placing and the appointments and authorities mentioned in this Prospectus (or any supplementary prospectus issued by the Company) will be governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of England and Wales. For the exclusive benefit of Numis, Kempen & Co, the Company, the AIFM, the Investment Adviser, the Receiving Agent and the Registrar, each Placee irrevocably submits to the jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales and waives any objection to proceedings in any such court on the ground of venue or on the ground that proceedings have been brought in an inconvenient forum. This does not prevent an action being taken against a Placee in any other jurisdiction.
In the case of a joint agreement to subscribe for Placing Shares under the Placing or any Subsequent Placing, references to a Placee in these terms and conditions are to each of the Placees who are a party to that joint agreement and their liability is joint and several.
Numis, Kempen & Co and the Company expressly reserve the right to modify the Placing, any Subsequent Placing or the Placing Programme (including, without limitation, its timetable and settlement) at any time before allocations are determined. The Placing and any Subsequent Placing(s) are subject to the satisfaction of the conditions contained in the Placing Agreement and to the Placing Agreement not having been terminated. Further details of the terms of the Placing Agreement are contained in paragraph 10 of Part X of this Prospectus.
Monies received from applicants pursuant to a Subsequent Placing under the Placing Programme will be held in accordance with the terms and conditions of any announcement issued by the Company in relation to that Subsequent Placing until such time as the Placing Agreement becomes unconditional in all respects in relation to that Subsequent Placing. If the Placing Agreement does not become unconditional in all respects in relation to that issue by the time specified in such announcement, application monies will be returned without interest at the risk of the applicant.
The Offer is only being made in the United Kingdom but, subject to applicable law, the Company may also allot Ordinary Shares on a private placement basis to applicants in other jurisdictions. If you are outside the United Kingdom, please see paragraph 9 of this Part XIV for further information.
party, in which case you will not be entitled to any refund or payment in respect thereof (in your favour, at your risk, for an amount equal to the proceeds of the remittance which accompanied your Application Form, without interest);
and any interest accruing on such retained monies shall accrue to and for the benefit of the Company;
money laundering, drug trafficking or terrorism;
3.5 The Company reserves the right in its absolute discretion (but shall not be obliged) to accept applications for less than the minimum subscription.
The contracts created by the acceptance of applications (in whole or in part) under the Offer will be conditional upon:
In circumstances where these conditions are not fully met, the Offer will not proceed. In the event that the Company (in consultation with Numis and Kempen & Co) decides to reduce the amount of the Minimum Net Proceeds or otherwise waive the condition referred to in paragraph 4(c) above, the Company will be required to publish a supplementary prospectus. Any number of shares subscribed for pursuant to the Issue may be allotted if the Minimum Net Proceeds are raised and the offer conditions referred to above are satisfied.
You will not be entitled to exercise any remedy of rescission for innocent misrepresentation (including precontractual representations) at any time after acceptance. This does not affect any other rights you may have.
Where application monies have been banked and/or received, if any application is not accepted in whole, or is accepted in part only, or if any contract created by acceptance does not become unconditional, the application monies or, as the case may be, the balance of the amount paid on application will be returned without interest and after the deduction of any applicable bank charges electronically. In the meantime, application monies will be retained by the Receiving Agent in a separate account.
By completing an Application Form, you:
relation to the Company and it is not a related party of the Company for the purposes of the Listing Rules;
Any delay or failure to provide the necessary evidence of identity may result in your application being rejected or delays in crediting CREST accounts or in the despatch of documents.
agents pursuant to this document, each prospective investor shall ensure that there is no prohibition or restriction which would:
The attention of potential investors who are not resident in, or who are not citizens of, the United Kingdom is drawn to this paragraph 9:
(a) The offer of New Ordinary Shares under the Offer to persons who are resident in, or citizens of, countries other than the United Kingdom ("Overseas Persons") may be affected by the law of the relevant jurisdictions. Such persons should consult their professional advisers as to whether they require any government or other consents or need to observe any applicable legal requirements to enable them to subscribe for New Ordinary Shares under the Offer. It is the responsibility of all Overseas Persons receiving this Prospectus and/or wishing to subscribe to the New Ordinary Shares under the Offer, to satisfy themselves as to full observance of the laws of any relevant territory or jurisdiction in connection therewith, including obtaining all necessary governmental or other consents that may be required and observing all other formalities required to be observed and paying any issue, transfer or other taxes due in such territory.
Overseas Investors should ensure that they have read the Notices to Overseas Investors section of this Prospectus.
The Prospectus does not constitute, and may not be used for the purposes of, an offer or an invitation to apply for any Ordinary Shares by any person: (i) in any jurisdiction in which such offer or invitation is not authorised; or (ii) in any jurisdiction in which the person making such offer or invitation is not qualified to do so; or (iii) to any person to whom it is unlawful to make such offer or invitation. The distribution of the Prospectus and the offering of Ordinary Shares in certain jurisdictions may be restricted. Accordingly, persons into whose possession the Prospectus comes are required to inform themselves about and observe any restrictions as to the offer or sale of Ordinary Shares and the distribution of the Prospectus under the laws and regulations of any jurisdiction in connection with any applications for Ordinary Shares, including obtaining any requisite governmental or other consent and observing any other formality prescribed in such jurisdiction. Save for the UK, no action has been taken or will be taken in any jurisdiction by the Company that would permit a public offering of Ordinary Shares in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required, nor has any such action been taken with respect to the possession or distribution of the Prospectus other than in any jurisdiction where action for that purpose is required.
In addition, potential investors should note that, except with the express written consent of the Company given in respect of an investment in the Company, the Ordinary Shares may not be acquired by: (i) investors using assets of: (A) an "employee benefit plan" that is subject to Part 4 of Title I of ERISA; (B) a "plan" to which Section 4975 of the U.S. Tax Code applies; or (C) an entity whose underlying assets are considered to include "plan assets" by reason of investment by an "employee benefit plan" or "plan" described in the preceding clauses (A) or (B) in such entity; or (ii) a governmental plan, church plan, or non-U.S. plan that is subject to a Similar Law, unless its purchase, holding, and disposition of the Ordinary Shares will not constitute or result in a violation of any Similar Law that prohibits or imposes an excise or penalty tax on the purchase of the Ordinary Shares.
This Prospectus has been approved by the FCA as a prospectus which may be used to offer securities to the public for the purposes of section 85 of FSMA and the Prospectus Regulation. No arrangement has however been made with the competent authority in any EEA State (or any other jurisdiction) for the use of this Prospectus as an approved prospectus in such jurisdiction and accordingly no public offer is to be made in such jurisdictions. Issue or circulation of this Prospectus may be prohibited in countries other than those in relation to which notices are given below. This Prospectus does not constitute an offer to sell, or the solicitation of an offer to subscribe for or buy, shares in any jurisdiction in which such offer or solicitation is unlawful.
In relation to each Member State of the European Economic Area and the United Kingdom (each a "Relevant State"), an offer to the public of any Ordinary Shares may not be made in that Relevant State, except that the Ordinary Shares may be offered to the public in that Relevant State at any time under the following exemptions under the Prospectus Regulation:
provided that no such offer of Ordinary Shares shall result in a requirement for, the publication by the Company, Numis and/or Kempen & Co of a prospectus pursuant to Article 3 of the Prospectus Regulation, or supplementing a prospectus pursuant to Article 23 of the Prospectus Regulation, and each person who initially acquires Ordinary Shares or to whom any offer is made will be deemed to have represented, warranted to and agreed with Numis, Kempen & Co and the Company that it is a "qualified investor" within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the Prospectus Regulation.
For the purposes of this provision, the expression an "offer to the public" in relation to any Ordinary Shares in any Relevant State means the communication in any form and by any means, presenting sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the Ordinary Shares to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe for any Ordinary Shares, and includes the placing of Ordinary Shares through financial intermediaries.
In the case of any Ordinary Shares being offered to a financial intermediary as that term is used in
the Prospectus Regulation, such financial intermediary will be deemed to have represented, warranted, acknowledged and agreed that the Ordinary Shares subscribed by it in the Issue or the Placing Programme have not been subscribed on a non-discretionary basis on behalf of, nor have they been subscribed with a view to their offer or resale to, persons in circumstances which may give rise to an offer of any Ordinary Shares to the public other than their offer or resale in a Relevant State to qualified investors as so defined or in circumstances in which the prior consent of Numis and Kempen & Co has been obtained to each such proposed offer or resale.
The Company, Numis, Kempen & Co and their affiliates and others will rely upon the truth and accuracy of the foregoing representation, warranty, acknowledgement and agreement. Notwithstanding the above, a person who is not a qualified investor and who has notified Numis and/or Kempen & Co of such fact in writing may, with the consent of Numis and Kempen & Co, be permitted to subscribe for Ordinary Shares in the Issue or the Placing Programme.
The New Ordinary Shares and the Ordinary Shares to be issued pursuant to a Subsequent Placing will not be offered, sold, placed or underwritten in Ireland:
No offer of Ordinary Shares to the public will be made in Luxembourg pursuant to this Prospectus, except that an offer of Ordinary Shares in Luxembourg may be made at any time:
provided that in both cases (a) and (b) above the AIFM fulfils the requirements set out in the AIFM Law (in particular the notification obligation set out in Article 45 of the AIFM Law (Article 42 of the AIFMD) and the potentially applicable ongoing requirements). For the purposes of this provision, the expression "Offer of Shares to the public" in relation to any Ordinary Shares in Luxembourg means the communication to persons in any form and by any means presenting sufficient information on the terms of the offer and the Ordinary Shares to be offered so as to enable an investor to decide to purchase or subscribe the Ordinary Shares, the expression "Prospectus Law" means the Luxembourg law of 16 July 2019 on prospectuses for securities and the expression "Prospectus Regulation" means the Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 on the prospectus to be published when securities are offered to the public or admitted to trading on a regulated market, as amended. "AIFM Law" means the Luxembourg Law of 12 July 2013 on alternative investment fund managers, as amended.
Neither the Company nor its AIFM have been authorised or registered under the AIFM Law or are
otherwise supervised by the Luxembourg Commission de Surveillance du Secteur Financier ("CSSF").
The Company is an alternative investment fund and the AIFM of the Company is an AIFM for purposes of the AIFMD. The AIFM is authorised by the Financial Supervisory Authority of Norway pursuant to Section 6-5 of the Norwegian Act on Alternative Investment Funds of 20 June 2014 no. 28 to market the Company to professional investors in Norway. The Company may only be marketed to professional investors as defined in Section 10-6 of the Norwegian Securities Act of 2 June 2007 no. 75 (the "Securities Trading Act").
The Prospectus may only be distributed to professional investors and the Prospectus may not be distributed to or made available to non-professional investors in Norway. Furthermore, the Prospectus has not been, nor will it be, registered with or authorised by any regulatory or governmental body in Norway. Accordingly, the Prospectus may not be made available, nor may the interests in the Company offered hereunder be marketed and offered for sale in Norway, other than under circumstances which do not require a prospectus (Nw. prospekt) to be prepared under the Securities Trading Act.
The Company is an alternative investment fund for purposes of the Finnish Act on Alternative Investment Fund Managers (Fi: laki vaihtoehtorahastojen hoitajista, 162/2014, as amended, the "AIFMA"). In Finland, the Ordinary Shares may only be offered to investors qualifying as "professional clients" (Fi: ammattimainen asiakas) as defined in the AIFMA. Accordingly, the Prospectus may only be distributed to professional clients in Finland and the Prospectus may not be distributed to or made available other than to professional clients in Finland. This Prospectus has been prepared for private information purposes only and it may not be used for, and shall not be deemed, a public offering of the Ordinary Shares in Finland.
The Company is an alternative investment fund and the AIFM of the Company is an "Alternative Investment Fund Manager" for purposes of the AIFMD. The AIFM has been approved by the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority pursuant to Chapter 5 Section 10 of the Swedish Act on Alternative Investment Fund Managers (2013:561) (the "Swedish AIFM Act") to market the Company to professional investors in Sweden.
Professional investor is defined in the Swedish AIFM Act by referring to chapter 9 section 4 and 5 in the Swedish Securities Market Act (2007:528) (the "Swedish Securities Market Act". The provisions in the Swedish Securities Market Act are partly implementing Appendix II to the Directive 2014/65/EU (the "Directive". Every investor who is considered to be a professional investor as defined in Appendix II to the Directive, or who can be treated as a professional investor upon submitting an application, is also considered a professional investor according to the Swedish regulation. The Company may be marketed to professional investors within the meaning of the Swedish AIFM Act only.
The Prospectus may only be distributed to professional investors and the Prospectus may not be distributed to or made available to non-professional investors in Sweden. Furthermore, the Prospectus has not been, nor will it be, registered with or approved by the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority under the Swedish Financial Instruments Trading Act (1991:980) (the "Swedish Trading Act"). Accordingly, the Prospectus may not be made available, nor may the interests in the Company offered hereunder be marketed and offered for sale in Sweden, other than under circumstances which do not require a prospectus (Sw. prospekt) to be prepared under the Swedish Trading Act.
Please be aware that past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results.
The Ordinary Shares are being marketed in the Netherlands under Section 1:13b of the Dutch Financial Supervision Act (Wet op het financieel toezicht, or the "Wft"). In accordance with this provision the AIFM; has notified the Dutch Authority for Financial Markets of its intention to offer these Ordinary Shares in the Netherlands. The Ordinary Shares will not, directly or indirectly, be offered, sold, transferred or delivered in the Netherlands, except to or by individuals or entities that are qualified investors (gekwalificeerde beleggers) within the meaning of Article 1:1 of the Wft, as amended from time to time, and as a consequence neither the AIFM nor the Company is subject to the license requirement pursuant to the Wft. Consequently, neither the AIFM nor the Company is subject to supervision of the Dutch Central Bank or the Dutch Authority for Financial Markets."
The Ordinary Shares have not been and will not be publicly offered, directly or indirectly, in Switzerland within the meaning of the Swiss Financial Services Act ("FinSA") except (i) to investors that qualify as professional clients within the meaning of the FinSA or (ii) in any other circumstances falling within article 36 para. 1 of the FinSA, and in any case only subject to the restrictions provided for in the last paragraph of this notice concerning Switzerland. The Ordinary Shares have not been and will not be admitted to any trading venue (exchange or multilateral trading facility) in Switzerland.
Neither this Prospectus nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the Ordinary Shares constitutes a prospectus within the meaning of the FinSA. This Prospectus has not been and will not be reviewed or approved by a Swiss review body and does not comply with the disclosure requirements applicable to a prospectus within the meaning of the FinSA. Neither this Prospectus nor any other offering or marketing material relating to the Ordinary Shares may be publicly distributed or otherwise made publicly available in Switzerland.
The Company has neither been and will neither be registered with the Swiss Financial Supervisory Authority ("FINMA") as a foreign collective investment for distribution to non-qualified investors pursuant to the Swiss Collective Investment Schemes Act ("CISA"), nor has the Company appointed or will the Company appoint a Swiss representative and paying agent, required for distribution to non-qualified investors and to high-net-worth retail clients and private investment structures created for them, having declared that they wish to be treated as professional clients ("Opting Out HNWI") (as further defined in the FinSA (cf. art. 5 paras. 1 and 2 of the FinSA) and its implementing ordinance). Accordingly, interests in the Company, including the Ordinary Shares may not be offered to non-qualified investors or to Opting Out HNWI in or from Switzerland.
The Ordinary Shares described herein may not, directly or indirectly, be offered or acquired in Belgium, and this Prospectus may not be circulated in Belgium as part of initial distribution or at any time thereafter, except:
(a) to qualified investors within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the Prospectus Regulation;
(b) to a maximum of 149 individuals who are not qualified investors within the meaning of Article 2(e) of the Prospectus Regulation; or
(c) to investors who acquire Ordinary Shares for a minimum consideration of EUR 100,000 or the equivalent thereof in another currency.
Neither the Company nor its AIFM have been authorised or registered under the Belgian AIFM Law of 19 April 2014 or are otherwise supervised by the Belgian Financial Services and Markets Authority.
The Ordinary Shares have not been and will not be registered under the U.S. Securities Act or under any laws of, or with any securities regulatory authority of any state or other jurisdiction of the United States and such Ordinary Shares may not be offered, sold, resold, transferred or delivered, directly or indirectly, in, into or within the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, a U.S. Person. There will be no offer or sale of the Ordinary Shares in the United States.
The Ordinary Shares are only being offered and sold outside the United States in offshore transactions to persons who are not U.S. Persons pursuant to Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act, which provides a safe-harbour from the requirement to register such offers and sales under the U.S. Securities Act.
In addition, distributors and dealers (whether or not participating in the Issue) may not offer, sell or deliver Ordinary Shares (A) at any time, as part of their distribution or (B) otherwise, until 40 days after the later of: (i) the commencement of the Issue; and (ii) the closing of the Issue, in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. Persons, and must provide each broker/dealer to which they sell any Ordinary Shares in reliance on Regulation S during such 40-day period, a confirmation or other notice detailing the restrictions on offers and sales of such securities in the United States or to, or for the account or benefit of, U.S. Persons. Failure to adhere to these requirements may result in a violation of the registration requirements of the U.S. Securities Act.
Aquila or Aquila means Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH
Capital
| Aquila Group | means Aquila and any of its Affiliates from time to time |
|---|---|
| Aquila Managed Funds |
means funds, finance vehicles or accounts managed or advised by Aquila or the Aquila Group |
| Articles or Articles of Association |
means the articles of association of the Company, as amended from time to time |
| Audit and Risk Committee |
means the committee of the Board as further described in Part V of this Prospectus |
| Auditor | means the auditors from time to time of the Company, the current such auditors being PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP |
| BaFin | means the German Federal Financial Supervisory Authority (Bundesanstalt für Finanzdienstleistungsaudsicht) |
| Board | means the board of Directors |
| Benfica III | means an operational solar park in Portugal comprising three projects as more particularly described in Part III of this document |
| Business Day | means a day on which the London Stock Exchange and banks in London are normally open for business |
| Business Hours | means the hours between 9.00 a.m. and 5.30 p.m. in London on any Business Day |
| Companies Act | means the Companies Act 2006, as amended from time to time |
| cent or cents | means Euro cent or cents |
| Company | means Aquila European Renewables Income Fund PLC |
| CREST | means the computerised settlement system operated by Euroclear UK and Ireland Limited which facilitates the transfer of title to shares in uncertificated form |
| CTA | means the Corporation Tax Act 2010, as amended from time to time |
| Data Protection Legislation |
means any law applicable from time to time relating to the processing of personal data and/or privacy, as in force at the date of this Prospectus or as re-enacted, applied, amended, superseded, repealed or consolidated, including without limitation the UK Data Protection Act 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) 2016/679, and the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003, in each case including any legally binding regulations, direction and orders issued from time to time under or in connection with any such law |
| Directors | means the directors from time to time of the Company and Director is to be construed accordingly |
| Disclosure and Transparency Rules |
means the disclosure guidance and the transparency rules made by the FCA under Part VI of the FSMA, as amended from time to time |
| EEA | means European Economic Area |
| Elcerts | means electricity certificates granted to producers of new renewable electricity for each MWh they produce |
| Enhanced Pipeline |
means the assets described in Part III of this Prospectus which have been identified by the Investment Adviser as being in line with the Investment Policy and available for purchase as at the date of this Prospectus |
| EPC | means engineering, procurement and construction contract |
|---|---|
| ERISA | means the United States Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974, as amended from time to time, and the rules and regulation promulgated thereunder |
| ESG | Environmental, Social and Governance |
| ETD | means the date the relevant Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investment was acquired by the Company |
| Euros or € | means the lawful currency of the Eurozone countries |
| Euro Quote | means the London Stock Exchange quote of the Ordinary Shares in Euros |
| EU | means the European Union |
| FATCA | means the United States Foreign Account Tax Compliance Act of 2010, as amended from time to time, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder |
| FCA | means the United Kingdom Financial Conduct Authority or any successor entity or entities |
| feed-in premium | means a type of price-based policy instrument whereby eligible renewable energy generators are paid a premium price, which is a payment in addition to the wholesale price |
| feed-in tariff | means a payment made to households or businesses generating their own electricity through the use of methods that do not contribute to the depletion of natural resources, proportional to the amount of power generated |
| FSMA | means the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, as amended from time to time |
| Future Admission |
means any admission of the Ordinary Shares to the premium segment of the Official List of the FCA and admission of the Ordinary Shares to trading on the main market for listed securities of the London Stock Exchange, in each case pursuant to a Subsequent Placing |
| General Meeting | means the general meeting of the Company convened for 6 October 2020 at which the resolutions in relation to the Issue and the Placing Programme shall be voted upon |
| GFSC | means the Guernsey Financial Services Commission |
| GRE | means gas reciprocating engines |
| Greenfield | means an undeveloped or agricultural tract of land that is a potential site for industrial or urban development |
| Gross Asset Value |
means the aggregate of (i) the fair value of the Company's underlying investments (whether or not subsidiaries), valued on an unlevered, discounted cash flow basis, (ii) the Company's proportionate share of the cash balances and cash equivalents of assets and non-subsidiary companies in which the Company holds an interest and (iii) other relevant assets of the Company (including cash) valued at fair value (other than third party borrowings) to the extent not included in (i) or (ii) above |
| Gross Issue Proceeds |
means the proceeds of the Issue, being the product of the number of Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to the Issue and the Issue Price |
| Group | means the Company, Tesseract Holdings and its subsidiaries, including SPVs and |
| holding vehicles |
| HMRC | means Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs |
|---|---|
| Holmen II | means the onshore wind farm located in Denmark as more particularly described in Part III of this document |
| IAS | means International Accounting Standards |
| IFM | means International Fund Management Limited, a limited liability company incorporated on 3 September 1987 in Guernsey (registered under Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008 under registered number 17484) with registered address Sarnia House, Le Truchot, St Peter Port, Guernsey GY1 4NA, with telephone number +44 (0)1481 737600 |
| IFRS | means International Financial Reporting Standards, as adopted by the EU from time to time |
| Interim Results | the unaudited interim results relating to the Company for the period from 1 January 2020 to 30 June 2020 |
| Investment Adviser |
means Aquila |
| Investment Advisory Agreement |
means the agreement between the AIFM and the Investment Adviser dated 10 May 2019 pursuant to which the AIFM has appointed Aquila to provide investment advisory services to the AIFM a summary of which is set out in paragraph 10 of Part X of this Prospectus |
| Investment Policy |
means the investment policy of the Company from time to time, the current version of which is set out in Part IV of this Prospectus |
| IPO | means the initial public offering of the Company which took place on 5 June 2020 |
| IPO Admission | means the admission of 154,304,752 million Ordinary Shares to the premium segment of the Official List and admission to trading on the Main Market in connection with the IPO |
| IPO Placing Programme |
means the placing programme constituted by the Company pursuant to a prospectus dated 10 May 2019 |
| ISA | means UK individual savings account |
| ISIN | means the International Securities Identification Number |
| Issue | means the issue of New Ordinary Shares pursuant to the Placing and the Offer for Subscription |
| Issue Costs | means the Issue expenses as detailed in Part VI of this Prospectus |
| Issue Price | means €1.0375 per Ordinary Share |
| Kempen & Co | means Van Lanschot Kempen Wealth Management N.V |
| LCOE | means the levelized cost of energy which is the cost per unit of energy from an energy generating asset that is based on the present value of total construction and lifetime operating costs, divided by expected total energy output from that asset over its lifetime |
| LEI | legal entity identifier |
| Letters of Appointment |
means the letters of appointments of each of the Directors as described in Part X of this Prospectus |
| Listing Rules | means the listing rules made by the FCA under section 73A of FSMA, as amended from time to time |
|---|---|
| London Stock Exchange |
means London Stock Exchange plc |
| Main Market | means the main market of the London Stock Exchange |
| Management Fee | means the management fees to which the AIFM is entitled pursuant to the AIFM Agreement as described in Part VI of this Prospectus |
| Market Abuse Regulation or MAR |
the Market Abuse Regulation (596/2014/EU), as amended from time to time |
| Member States | means those states which are members of the EU from time to time |
| Minimum Net Proceeds |
means €5 million |
| Money Laundering Regulations |
means the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017, as amended from time to time |
| MPE | means the Norwegian Ministry of Petroleum and Energy |
| MW | means megawatt |
| MWh | means megawatt hours |
| Net Asset Value or NAV |
means total assets less outstanding third party borrowings calculated in accordance with the Company's valuation policies and as described in Part VI of this Prospectus |
| Net Issue Proceeds |
means the Gross Issue Proceeds minus the Issue Costs |
| New Ordinary Shares |
means up to 192,771,084 new Ordinary Shares to be issued in connection with the Issue |
| Numis | means Numis Securities Limited |
| O&M Agreement | means an operation and maintenance agreement |
| OCGT | means open-cycle gas turbines |
| Offer or Offer for Subscription |
means the offer for subscription to the public in the UK of New Ordinary Shares to be issued at the Issue Price on the terms set out in Part XIV of this Prospectus and the Application Form |
| Official List | means the official list maintained by the FCA under Part VI of FSMA |
| Olhava | means the onshore wind farm located in Finland as more particularly described in Part III of this document |
| Ordinary Shares | means ordinary shares of one cent each in the capital of the Company |
| Placee | means a placee under the Placing |
| Placing | means the proposed placing of New Ordinary Shares at the Issue Price as described in this Prospectus on the terms and subject to the conditions set out in the Placing Agreement and this Prospectus |
| Placing Programme |
means the proposed programme of placings in the period following the date of Admission to the date falling twelve months from the date of this Prospectus |
|
|---|---|---|
| Placing Programme Price |
means such price at which the Ordinary Shares will be issued to placees under the Placing Programme, as shall be determined by the Directors |
|
| Placing Agreement |
means the placing agreement between the Company, the Investment Adviser, Numis and Kempen & Co dated 17 September 2020, a summary of which is set out in paragraph 10 of Part X of this Prospectus |
|
| Plan Asset Regulations |
means the regulations promulgated by the U.S. Department of Labor at 29 CFR 2510.3-101, as modified by section 3(42) of ERISA |
|
| Portfolio | means the Group's portfolio of Renewable Energy Infrastructure Investments as set out in Part III of this document |
|
| PPA | means a power purchase agreement | |
| PRIIPs Regulation |
means Regulation (EU) No 1286/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 November 2014 on key information documents for packaged retail insurance based investment products (PRIIPs) including any delegated regulation, regulatory technical standards and/or any implementing measures made thereunder or in respect thereof, in each case amended from time to time |
|
| Prospectus Regulation |
means Regulation (EU) 2017/1129 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 14 June 2017 on the prospectus to be published when securities are offered to the public or admitted to trading on a regulated market, as amended and includes any relevant implementing measure in each Relevant State |
|
| Prospectus Regulation Rules |
means the prospectus regulation rules made by the FCA under section 73A of FSMA as amended from time to time |
|
| PV | means photovoltaic | |
| Receiving Agent | means Computershare Investor Services PLC | |
| Receiving Agent Agreement |
means the receiving agent agreement between the Company and the Receiving Agent dated 17 September 2020, a summary of which is set out in paragraph 10 of Part X of this Prospectus |
|
| Registrar | means Computershare Investor Services PLC | |
| Registrar Agreement |
means the registrar agreement between the Company and the Registrar dated 10 May 2019, a summary of which is set out in paragraph 10 of Part X of this Prospectus |
|
| Regulated Market | has the meaning given to it in the FCA Handbook | |
| Regulation S | means Regulation S under the U.S. Securities Act | |
| Regulatory Information Services |
means a regulatory information service approved by the FCA and on the list of Regulatory Information Services maintained by the FCA |
|
| Relevant State | means each Member State of the United Kingdom | |
| Remuneration and Nomination Committee |
means the committee of the Board as described in Part V of this Prospectus | |
| Renewable | means renewable energy infrastructure investments which fall within the |
| Energy Infrastructure Investments |
Company's Investment Policy as set out in Part IV of this Prospectus |
|---|---|
| Renewable Energy Share or RES |
means the share of the EU's energy mix comprising renewable energy |
| Reporting Accountant |
means PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP |
| Restricted Jurisdiction |
means any jurisdiction where the extension or availability of the Issue or any Subsequent Placing would breach applicable law |
| RSC | means the Aquila Group's Real Asset Strategy Council |
| Sagres | means the small scale hydro power plant located in Portugal as more particularly described in Part III of this document |
| SEDOL | means the Stock Exchange Daily Official List |
| Share | means a share in the capital of the Company (of whatever class) |
| Shareholder | means a registered holder of a Share |
| Similar Law | means any federal, state, local or non-U.S. law that regulates the investments of a governmental plan, church plan or non-U.S. plan in a manner similar to ERISA and the U.S. Tax Code |
| SIPP | means self-invested personal pension |
| SPV | means special purpose vehicle |
| SSAS | means small self-administered scheme |
| Sterling and £ | means the lawful currency of the United Kingdom and any replacement currency thereto |
| Sterling Quote | means the London Stock Exchange quote of the Ordinary Shares in Sterling |
| Subsequent Placing |
means each placing under the Placing Programme |
| Svindbaek I & II | means the onshore wind farm located in Denmark as more particularly described in Part III of this document |
| TCM | means total market contractor |
| Tesla | means the onshore wind farm located in Norway as more particularly described in Part III of this document |
| Tesseract Holdings |
means Tesseract Holdings Limited, the Company's wholly owned subsidiary |
| The Rock | means the onshore wind farm located in Norway as more particularly described in Part III of this document |
| Trade Mark Licence |
means the trade mark licence between the Company and the Investment Adviser dated 10 May 2019, a summary of which is set out in paragraph 10 of Part X of this Prospectus |
| TwH | means terawatt hours |
| UCITS | means Undertaking for Collective Investment in Transferable Securities |
|---|---|
| UK or United Kingdom |
means the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
| UK Corporate Governance Code |
means the Financial Reporting Council's UK Corporate Governance Code 2018, as amended from time to time |
| United States or U.S. |
means the United States of America, its territories and possessions, any state of the United States of America and the District of Columbia |
| U.S. Exchange Act |
means the United States Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended from time to time, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder |
| U.S. Investment Company Act |
means the United States Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended from time to time, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder |
| U.S. Person | means a "U.S. person" as defined in Regulation S |
| U.S. Securities Act |
means the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended from time to time, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder |
| U.S. Tax Code | means the United States Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended from time to time, and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder |
| Valuation Date | means a date as at which the Net Asset Value is calculated, being 31 March, 30 June, 30 September and 31 December in each year |
| Valuation Policy | means the valuation policy of the Company adopted by the Board, as amended from time to time |
Applications should be returned to the Receiving Agent, Computershare Investor Services PLC, so as to be received no later than 11:00 a.m. (London time) on 8 October 2020.
HELP DESK: If you have a query concerning completion of this Application Form please call Computershare on 0370 703 0020 from within the UK or on +44 (0) 370 703 0020 if calling from outside the UK. Calls may be recorded and randomly monitored for security and training purposes. Lines are open from 8.30 a.m. until 5.30 p.m. (London time) Monday to Friday excluding UK public holidays). The helpline cannot provide advice on the merits of the Offer nor give any financial, legal or tax advice.
Fill in (in figures) in Box 1 the number of New Ordinary Shares that you wish to subscribe for at the Issue Price, which is €1.0375 per Share. The amount being subscribed for must be a minimum of €1000, and thereafter in multiples of €100.
Financial intermediaries who are investing on behalf of clients should make separate applications in respect of each client or, if making a single application for more than one client, should provide details of all clients in respect of whom application is made, in order to benefit most favourably from any scaling back (should this be required) and/or from any commission arrangements.
Fill in (in block capitals) the full name and address of each holder. Applications may only be made by persons aged 18 years or over.
In the case of joint holders, only the first named holder may bear a designation reference, and the address given for the first named holder will be entered as the registered address for the holding on the share register and used for all future correspondence.
A maximum of four joint holders is permitted. All holders named must sign at section 3.
If you wish your New Ordinary Shares to be deposited in a CREST Account in the name of the holders given in section 2A, you should enter the details of that CREST Account in section 2B. Where it is requested that New Ordinary Shares be deposited into a CREST Account, please note that payment for such New Ordinary Shares must be made prior to the day such New Ordinary Shares might be allotted and issued.
All holders named in section 2A must sign section 3 and insert the date. The Application Form may be signed by another person on behalf of each holder if that person is duly authorised to do so under a power of attorney. The power of attorney (or a copy duly certified by a solicitor or a bank) must be enclosed for inspection (originals will be returned by post at the addressee's risk).
A corporation should sign under the hand of a duly authorised official, whose representative capacity should be stated. A copy of a notice issued by the corporation authorising such person to sign should accompany the Application Form.
For applicants sending subscription monies by electronic bank transfer (CHAPS), payment must be made for value by no later than 11:00 a.m. on 8 October 2020. Please contact Computershare by email at: [email protected] for full bank details or telephone the Shareholder helpline on 0370 703 0020 from within the UK or on +44 (0) 370 703 0020 if calling from outside the UK for further information. Computershare will then provide you with a unique reference number which must be used when sending payment.
The Company will apply for the New Ordinary Shares issued pursuant to the Offer in uncertificated form to be enabled for CREST transfer and settlement with effect from the date of Admission (the "Settlement Date"). Accordingly, settlement of transactions in the New Ordinary Shares will normally take place within the CREST system.
The Application Form contains details of the information which the Receiving Agent will require from you in order to settle your application within CREST, if you so choose. If you do not provide any CREST details or if you provide insufficient CREST details for the Receiving Agent to match to your CREST Account, the Receiving Agent will deliver your New Ordinary Shares in certificated form (provided that payment has been made in terms satisfactory to the Company).
The right is reserved to issue your New Ordinary Shares in certificated form if the Company, having consulted with the Receiving Agent, considers this to be necessary or desirable. This right is only likely to be exercised in the event of any interruption, failure or breakdown of CREST or any part of CREST or of the facilities and/or system operated by the Receiving Agent in connection with CREST.
The person named for registration purposes in your Application Form (which term shall include the holder of the relevant CREST Account) must be: (i) the person procured by you to subscribe for or acquire the relevant New Ordinary Shares; or (ii) yourself; or (iii) a nominee of any such person or yourself, as the case may be. Neither the Receiving Agent nor the Company will be responsible for any liability to stamp duty or stamp duty reserve tax resulting from a failure to observe this requirement. The Receiving Agent, on behalf of the Company, will input a DVP instruction into the CREST system according to the booking instructions provided by you in your Application Form. The input returned by you or your settlement agent/custodian of a matching or acceptance instruction to our CREST input will allow the delivery of your New Ordinary Shares to your CREST Account against payment of the Issue Price per Share through the CREST system upon the Settlement Date.
By returning the Application Form, you agree that you will do all things necessary to ensure that your, or your settlement agent/custodian's, CREST Account allows for the delivery and acceptance of New Ordinary Shares to be made prior to 8:00 a.m. on 13 October 2020 against payment of the Issue Price per Ordinary Share. Failure by you to do so will result in you being charged interest at a rate equal to the London Inter-Bank Offered Rate for seven day deposits in Euros plus 2 per cent. per annum.
To ensure that you fulfil this requirement, it is essential that you or your settlement agent/custodian follow the CREST matching criteria set out below:
| Trade Date: | 9 October 2020 |
|---|---|
| Settlement Date: | 13 October 2020 |
| Company: | Aquila European Renewables Income Fund PLC |
| Security Description: | Ordinary Shares |
| SEDOL (Euros): | BK6RLF6 |
| SEDOL (Sterling) | BJMXQK1 |
| ISIN: | G800BK6RLF66 |
Should you wish to settle by DVP, you will need to match your instructions to the Receiving Agent's Participant account 3RA29 by no later than 1:00 p.m. on 12 October 2020.
You must also ensure that you have or your settlement agent/custodian has a sufficient "debit cap" within the CREST system to facilitate settlement in addition to your/its own daily trading and settlement requirements.
In the event of late CREST settlement, the Company, after having consulted with the Receiving Agent, reserves the right to deliver New Ordinary Shares outside CREST in certificated form (provided that payment has been made in terms satisfactory to the Company and all other conditions in relation to the Offer for Subscription have been satisfied).
Applications will be subject to the United Kingdom's verification of identity requirements. This means that you must provide the verification of identity documents listed in section 6 of the Application Form unless the declaration in section 5 is completed and signed by a firm acceptable to the Receiving Agent. In order to ensure that your application is processed timely and efficiently, you are strongly advised to have a suitable firm complete and sign the declaration in section 5.
Applicants need only consider section 6 if the declaration in section 5 cannot be completed. However, even if the declaration in section 5 has been completed and signed, the Receiving Agent reserves the right to request of you the identity documents listed in section 6 and/or to seek verification of identity of each holder and payor (if necessary) from you or their bankers or from another reputable institution, agency or professional adviser in the applicable country of residence. If satisfactory evidence of identity has not been obtained within a reasonable time your application might be rejected or revoked. Where certified copies of documents are provided such copy documents should be certified by a senior signatory of a firm which is either a governmental approved bank, stockbroker or investment firm, financial services firm or an established law firm or accountancy firm which is itself subject to regulation in the conduct of its business in its own country of operation and the name of the firm should be clearly identified on each document certified.
To ensure the efficient and timely processing of this application, please enter below the contact details of a person whom the Receiving Agent may contact with all enquiries concerning this application. Ordinarily, this contact person should be the person signing in section 3 on behalf of the first named holder. If no contact details are provided in this section 6 but a regulated person is identified in section 5, the Receiving Agent will contact the regulated person. If no contact details are provided in this section 6 and no regulated person is named in section 5 and the Receiving Agent requires further information, any delay in obtaining that additional information may result in your application being rejected or revoked.
Completed Application Forms should be returned either by post to Computershare Investor Services PLC (Corporate Actions Projects, The Pavilions, Bridgwater Road, Bristol, BS99 6AH) or by hand (during normal business hours) to the Receiving Agent (Corporate Actions Projects, The Pavilions, Bridgwater Road, Bristol, BS13 8AE) so as to be received no later than 11:00 a.m. on 8 October 2020.
If you post your Application Form you are recommended to use first class post and to allow at least two days for delivery. Application Forms received after this date may be returned.
Please send this completed form by post to Computershare Investor Services PLC (Corporate Actions Projects, The Pavilions, Bridgwater Road, Bristol, BS99 6AH) or by hand (during normal business hours) to the Receiving Agent (Corporate Actions Projects, The Pavilions, Bridgwater Road, Bristol, BS13 8AE) so as to be received no later than 11:00 a.m. on 8 October 2020.
The Company, Numis and Kempen & Co may agree to alter such date, and thereby shorten or lengthen the Offer period. In the event that the Offer period is altered, the Company will notify investors of such change.
Important: Before completing this form, you should read the Prospectus dated 17 September 2020, including Part XIV (''Terms and Conditions of the Offer for Subscription'') of the Prospectus, and the section titled ''Notes on How to Complete the Offer for Subscription Application Form''.
Box 1 (minimum of €1000 and in multiples of €100 thereafter
To: Aquila European Renewables Income Fund PLC and the Receiving Agent
I/We the person(s) detailed in section 2A below offer to subscribe the amount shown in Box 1 above for New Ordinary Shares subject to the ''Terms and Conditions of the Offer for Subscription'' set out in the Prospectus dated 17 September 2020 and subject to the articles of association of the Company in force from time to time.
| 1. Mr, Mrs, Miss or Title: | Forenames (in full): | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Surname/Company Name: | ||||
| Address (in full): | ||||
| Postcode: | Designation (if any): | |||
| 2. Mr, Mrs, Miss or Title: | Forenames (in full): | |||
| Surname/Company Name: | ||||
| Address (in full): | ||||
| Postcode: | Designation (if any): | |||
| 3. Mr, Mrs, Miss or Title: | Forenames (in full): | |||
| Surname/Company Name: | ||||
| Address (in full): | ||||
| Postcode: | Designation (if any): | |||
| 4. Mr, Mrs, Miss or Title: | Forenames (in full): | |||
| Surname/Company Name: | ||||
| Address (in full): | ||||
(BLOCK CAPITALS)
FOR OFFICIAL USE ONLY
Log No
| Postcode: | Designation (if any): |
|---|---|
Only complete this section if New Ordinary Shares allotted are to be deposited in a CREST Account which must be in the same name as the holder(s) given in section 2A.
| CREST Participant ID: | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CREST Member Account ID: |
By completing section 3 below you are deemed to have read the Prospectus and agreed to the terms and conditions in Part XIV (Terms and Conditions of the Offer for Subscription) of the Prospectus and to have given the warranties, representations and undertakings set out therein.
| First Applicant Signature: | Date: |
|---|---|
| Second Applicant Signature: | Date: |
| Third Applicant Signature: | Date: |
| Fourth Applicant Signature: | Date: |
Execution by a Company
| Executed by (Name of Company): | Date: | |
|---|---|---|
| Name of Director: | Signature: | Date: |
| Name of Director/Secretary: | Signature: | Date: |
| If you are affixing a company seal, please mark a cross |
Affix Company Seal here: |
If you are subscribing for New Ordinary Shares and sending subscription monies by electronic bank transfer, payment must be made for value by 11:00 a.m. on 8 October 2020. Please contact Computershare by email at [email protected] for full bank details or telephone the Shareholder Helpline for further information. Computershare will then provide you with a unique reference number which must be used when sending payment.
Please enter below the following details including the bank you will be instructing to make payment by 11:00 a.m. on 8 October 2020, together with the name and number of the account to be debited with such payment and the branch contact details.
| SWIFT Code: | IBAN: |
|---|---|
| Account Name: | Bank Name and Address: |
Only complete this section if you choose to settle your application within CREST (i.e. by DVP).
Please indicate the CREST Participant ID from which the DEL message will be received by the Receiving Agent for matching, which should match that shown in section 2B above, together with the relevant Member Account ID.
CREST Participant ID:
CREST Member Account ID:
You or your settlement agent/custodian's CREST Account must allow for the delivery and acceptance of New Ordinary Shares to be made against payment at the Issue Price per Share, following the CREST matching criteria set out below:
| Trade Date: | 9 October 2020 | |
|---|---|---|
| Settlement Date: | 13 October 2020 | |
| Company: | Aquila European Renewables Income Fund PLC | |
| Security Description: | Ordinary Shares | |
| SEDOL (Euros): | BK6RLF6 | |
| ISIN: | GB00BK6RLF66 |
Should you wish to settle by DVP, you will need to match your instructions to the Receiving Agent's Participant account 3RA29 by no later than 1:00 p.m. on 12 October 2020.
You must also ensure that you or your settlement agent/custodian have a sufficient ''debit cap'' within the CREST system to facilitate settlement in addition to your/their own daily trading and settlement requirements.
Completion and signing of this declaration by a suitable person or institution may avoid presentation being requested of the identity documents detailed in section 6 of this form.
The declaration below may only be signed by a person or institution (such as a governmental approved bank, stockbroker or investment firm, financial services firm or an established law firm or accountancy firm) (the ''firm'') which is itself subject in its own country to operation of 'know your customer' and anti-money laundering regulations which are no less stringent than those which prevail in the United Kingdom.
To the Company and the Receiving Agent
With reference to the holder(s) detailed in section 2A, all persons signing at section 3, and the payor identified in section 6 if not also a holder (collectively the ''subjects''), WE HEREBY DECLARE:
mentioned; and
(6) if the payor and holder(s) are different persons, we are satisfied as to the relationship between them and the reason for the payor being different to the holder(s).
The above information is given in strict confidence for your own use only and without any guarantee, responsibility or liability on the part of this firm or its officials.
| Signed: | Name: | Position: | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name of regulatory authority: | Firm's licence number: |
Website address or telephone number of regulatory authority:
STAMP of firm giving full name and business address:
If the declaration in section 5 cannot be signed and the value of your application is greater than €15,000, please enclose with the Application Form the documents mentioned below, as appropriate. Please also tick the relevant box to indicate which documents you have enclosed, all of which will be returned by the Receiving Agent to the first named applicant.
In accordance with internationally recognised standards for the prevention of money laundering, the documents and information set out below must be provided:
| Tick here for documents provided |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holders | Payor | |||||||
| A. For each applicant who is an individual enclose: | ||||||||
| (1) an original or a certified clear photocopy of one of the following identification documents which bear both a photograph and the signature of the person: current passport – Government or Armed Forces identity card – driving licence; and |
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| (2) an original or certified copies of at least two of the following documents no more than 3 months old which purport to confirm that the address given in section 2A is that person's residential address: a recent gas, electricity, water or telephone (not mobile) bill – a recent bank statement – a council rates bill – or similar document issued by a recognised authority; and |
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| (3) if none of the above documents show their date and place of birth, enclose a note of such information; and |
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| (4) details of the name and address of their personal bankers from which the Receiving Agent may request a reference, if necessary. |
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| B. For each holder being a company (a ''holder company''), enclose: |
| Tick here for documents provided |
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Holders | Payor | |||||||
| (1) a certified copy of the certificate of incorporation of the holder company; and |
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| (2) the name and address of the holder company's principal bankers from which the Receiving Agent may request a reference, if necessary; and |
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| (3) a statement as to the nature of the holder company's business, signed by a director; and |
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| (4) a list of the name and the residential address of each director of the holder company; and |
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| (5) for each director provide documents and information similar to that mentioned in A above; and |
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| (6) a copy of the authorised signatory list for the holder company; and |
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| (7) a list of the names and residential/registered address of each ultimate beneficial owner interested in more than 5 per cent of the issued share capital of the holder company and, where a person is named, also complete C below and, if another company is named (a ''beneficiary company''), also complete D below. If the beneficial owner(s) named do not directly own the holder company but do so indirectly via nominee(s) or intermediary entities, provide details of the relationship between the beneficial owner(s) and the holder company. |
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| C: For each person named in B(7) as a beneficial owner of a holder company, enclose for each such person documentation and information similar to that mentioned in A(1) to (4). |
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| D. For each beneficiary company named in B(7) as a beneficial owner of a holder company, enclose: |
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| (1) a certified copy of the certificate of incorporation of that beneficiary company; and |
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| (2) a statement as to the nature of that beneficiary company's business signed by a director; and |
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| (3) the name and address of that beneficiary company's principal bankers from which the Receiving Agent may request a reference, if necessary; and |
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| (4) a list of the names and residential/registered address of each beneficial owner owning more than 5 per cent. of the issued share capital of that beneficiary company. |
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| E. If the payor is not a holder and is not a bank providing its own banker's payment on the reverse of which is shown details of the account being debited with such payment (see note 5 of the notes |
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| on how to complete this form, below), enclose: | ||||||||
| (1) if the payor is a person, for that person the documents mentioned in A(1) to (4); or |
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| (2) if the payor is a company, for that company the documents mentioned in B(1) to (7); and |
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| (3) an explanation of the relationship between the payor and the holder(s). |
The Receiving Agent reserves the right to ask for additional documents and information.
To ensure the efficient and timely processing of this application, please enter below the contact details of a person whom the Receiving Agent may contact with all enquiries concerning this application. Ordinarily, this contact person should be the person signing in section 3 on behalf of the first named holder. If no contact details are provided in this section 7 but a regulated person is identified in section 5, the Receiving Agent will contact the regulated person. If no contact details are provided in this section 7 and no regulated person is named in section 5 and the Receiving Agent requires further information, any delay in obtaining that additional information may result in your application being rejected or revoked.
Contact name: E-mail address:
Contact address:
Telephone No: Postcode:
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