Green investor Triple Point Energy Efficiency Infrastructure is eying portfolio expansion of over £560 million.
In a trading statement to investors today John Roberts, chairman of the closed end fund, told investors that total covers exclusive talks to secure £108 million of grid-scale batteries. Final terms of the storage deals are being progressed.
“Batteries are essential to improve front-of-meter energy efficiency, to maximise and make use of the intermittent power from the grid scale renewables which are making up an increasingly larger proportion of the UK’s generating capacity, ” Roberts writes.
“I am pleased with the performance of (the fund)’s existing investments as well as the emerging diverse pipeline of high quality assets which provides a great opportunity to accelerate Triple Point’s growth ambitions”.
To fund the short-term pipeline and ensure investment flexibility, Triple Point is talking to financiers about an extended credit line of up to £40 million.
In November the fund pumped £47 million into ownership of nine UK hydroelectric dams, totalling 6.6MW in generation. Around 90% of that capacity is underwritten until 2035 by Feed-in Tariff revenues linked to RPI; as inflation takes off, the firm anticipates a 7.5% uplift from April.
The dams’ generation over 2021’s final quarter ran 17% ahead of expectations. The fund is investigating boosting output by re-instating neighbouring peat bogs, thereby enhancing biodiversity.
Triple Point last year paid £29 million for three CHP plants on Teesside and the Isle of Wight, together rated at 25.3MW. Each supplies heat, power and carbon dioxide for food processing. Clients include Britain’s biggest tomato grower, and a new Teesside customer supplied under a private wire deal.
Last July the fund was trading at around 110p on the LSE. Today’s news drifted the price down by late afternoon to 93.15p, valuing the fund at £94 million.
