Gore Street Energy Storage Fund PLC Unaudited NAV and Dividend Declaration

RNS Number : 6576D

Gore Street Energy Storage Fund PLC

11 September 2024

 

11 September 2024

Gore Street Energy Storage Fund plc

(the "Company" or "GSF")

Unaudited NAV and Dividend Declaration

Gore Street Energy Storage Fund plc, the internationally diversified energy storage fund, is pleased to announce its unaudited Net Asset Value ("NAV") as at 30 June 2024.

Net Asset Value - June-end 2024

The Company announces an unaudited NAV of 104.4 pence per share as at 30 June 2024, representing a 2.5% decrease during the quarter (31 March 2024: 107.0 pence per share). Accounting for the 2.0 pence dividend paid during the period, the quarterly NAV total return was -0.7%. 

The total NAV return, including dividends paid, amounts to 46.7% since the IPO in May 2018. DCF changes include a prudent update to assumed asset availability within the GB market, which the Investment Manager believes could be affected for a period by certain external factors such as curtailment. Other key macro assumptions and merchant revenue forecasts remain unchanged from the Company's March-end 2024 NAV.

Unaudited movement in NAV between 31 March 2024 and 30 June 2024

	£ million	Pence per Ordinary Share
NAV as at 31 March 2024	540.7	107.0
Fund and Subsid. Holding Companies Operating Expenses	(2.7)	(0.5)
Dividends	(9.9)	(2.0)
Cash Generation	5.0	1.0
DCF changes and Rollover	(5.9)	(1.1)
NAV as at 30 June 2024	527.2	104.4

 

Strong Balance Sheet:

·    As at 30 June 2024, the Group remained well-capitalised, with £66.1m in cash or cash equivalents.

·    As at the same date, the Group had drawn £56.4m from its borrowing facilities, with additional debt headroom of £39.8m.

·    As previously disclosed in the Company's FY24 Annual Report, the Investment Manager expects a cash inflow in the range of $60 million to $80 million for next year under the Investment Tax Credit regime available to its US construction assets.

Construction Updates

·    The Company's construction portfolio is now significantly de-risked, with only three assets left to come online.

o Enderby (57 MW / 57 MWh), based in GB, is in its final stages of completion, and the Company expects to update the market shortly via the Monthly Factsheet.

o Big Rock (200 MW / 400 MWh) has completed various construction milestones, including all battery and inverter enclosures on site post-period.

o  Dogfish (75 MW / 75 MWh) construction is progressing to plan; site works are well advanced, with the first delivery of batteries expected in mid-September.  The US assets are on track for their respective energisation dates (Big Rock: December 2024, Dogfish: February 2025), resulting in energised capacity reaching c.750 MW in the next five months.

Dividend Declaration

As per the Company's dividend policy, the Board of Directors has approved a dividend of 1.0 pence per share for the June-end quarter. The ex-dividend date will be 26 September 2024, followed by a record date of 27 September 2024. The dividend will be paid on or around 18 October 2024.

Any such dividend payment to Shareholders may take the form of either dividend income or "qualifying interest income", which may be designated as an interest distribution for UK tax purposes and, therefore, subject to the interest streaming regime applicable to investment trusts. Of this dividend declared of 1.0 pence per share, 1.0 pence is treated as qualifying interest income.

The Board would like to take the opportunity to reaffirm to investors that it remains committed to the Company's 7.0 pence dividend target per Ordinary Share for the financial year.

Annual General Meeting (AGM)

The AGM will be held on Wednesday, 18 September 2024, at 10.00 a.m. More information can be found on page 88 of the 2024 Annual Report and Financial Statement here. Investors are encouraged to vote.

Factsheets

The Company produces a monthly factsheet, in addition to quarterly updates, to communicate developments from across its portfolio and markets in which it operates. The publications, including the quarterly factsheet, are available on the Company's website here.

CEO of Gore Street Capital, the Investment Manager of the Company, Alex O'Cinneide, commented:

"The portfolio is now materially derisked with just three assets left in construction. Once the three assets are completed, we expect the portfolio to reach a steady state, able to meet its dividend targets from cash generation. Furthermore, we expect a material increase in contracted revenue contribution to portfolio cashflow through the Resource Adequacy contract, for which the 200 MW Big Rock asset is eligible once operational. Additionally, we expect a cash inflow of between $60-80 million under the Investment Tax Credit Regime for the 275 MW of US construction assets. This influx of cash adds optionality to de-lever the portfolio, build further assets, or reward shareholders through dividends or buybacks.

We remain committed to providing strong returns through the unique exposure across multiple uncorrelated markets and delivering value for all stakeholders."

For further information:  

Gore Street Capital Limited                                                                                       

Alex O'Cinneide / Paula Travesso / Ben Paulden                                                               

Email: [e-mail]                                                                                     Tel: [phone]

 

Shore Capital (Joint Corporate Broker) 

Anita Ghanekar / Fiona Conroy/ Sophie Collins                                                  Tel: [phone]

(Corporate Broking)       

 

J.P. Morgan Cazenove (Joint Corporate Broker)

William Simmonds / Jérémie Birnbaum (Corporate Finance)                        Tel: [phone]

                 

Burson Buchanan (Media Enquiries)      

Charles Ryland / Henry Wilson / George Beale                                                   Tel: [phone]

Email: [e-mail]    

 

Notes to Editors  

About Gore Street Energy Storage Fund plc  

Gore Street is London's first listed and internationally diversified energy storage fund dedicated to the low-carbon transition. It seeks to provide Shareholders with sustainable returns from their investment in a diversified portfolio of utility-scale energy storage projects. In addition to growth through increasing operational capacity and a considerable pipeline, the Company aims to deliver consistent and robust dividend yield as income distributions to its Shareholders.  

 

https://www.gsenergystoragefund.com

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