29 May 2024
JLEN ENVIRONMENTAL ASSETS
GROUP LIMITED
("JLEN"
or the "Company")
Net Asset Value, Dividend
Declaration and FY25 Dividend Target
Net
Asset Value and dividend target
JLEN, the listed environmental infrastructure
fund, is pleased to announce an unaudited Net Asset Value ("NAV")
of £751.2 million at 31 March 2024 (31 December 2023: £777.7
million). This results in a NAV per Ordinary Share of 113.6 pence
(31 December 2023: 117.6 pence) after payment of the target
quarterly dividend of 1.90 pence.
The Board is pleased to announce the
Company's 10th consecutive dividend increase since IPO,
with a dividend target of 7.80 pence per share for the year to 31
March 2025, representing a 3.0% uplift from the year to 31 March
2024.
Summary of changes in NAV:
|
NAV per
share
|
NAV at 31 December 2023
|
117.6p
|
Dividends paid in the
period
|
-1.9p
|
Power prices
|
-2.1p
|
Battery revenue outlook
|
-1.6p
|
Discount rate changes
|
0.4p
|
Other movements (including actual
asset performance)
|
1.2p
|
NAV
at 31 March 2024
|
113.6p
|
Power prices
The portfolio continues to benefit from a
high degree of protection from short term price hedges as well as
revenues from subsidies and long-term contracts that are not
derived from power prices. As a result the portfolio has been
resilient despite a significant reduction in near term electricity
and gas price expectations.
Once reflecting the compensating
impact from the Electricity Generator Levy, downward power price
forecasts have resulted in a reduction in NAV of 2.1 pence compared
to 31 December 2023.
Battery revenue outlook
Near term battery revenue projections have reduced significantly in
recent months. Whilst the portfolio only has one operational asset,
this backdrop has impacted pricing and valuations in the market for
assets at all stages of their lifecycle.
The impact of changes to revenue
forecasts is to decrease the NAV by 1.6 pence compared to 31
December 2023.
Since April 2024, revenues have
started to rise, and independent market analysis suggests this
trend to continue through 2024 and 2025 as well as continued strong
fundamentals for the long term outlook of the sector.
Discount rates
Discount rates have been reviewed across the portfolio to
ensure they remain in line with evidence of recent market
transactions seen by the Investment Manager and assessment from
JLEN's independent valuation advisor. There have been no material
changes to discount rates in the period, and the overall Weighted
Average Discount Rate remains at 9.4%. The net effect of changes to
discount rates is to increase the NAV by 0.4 pence compared to 31
December 2023.
Update on asset sales
The
Investment Manager continues to progress several credible selective
asset disposal opportunities. The Board expects to update
shareholders in due course.
Dividend
Financial performance of the
portfolio has been satisfactory, with dividend cover of 1.30x for
the year to 31 March 2024.
The Company also announces a final
quarterly interim dividend of 1.89 pence per share for the period
from 1 January 2024 to 31 March 2024.
Together with the interim dividends
paid during the financial year to date of 5.68 pence per share, the
Company will have paid total dividends of 7.57 pence per share in
respect of the year ended 31 March 2024, in line with the dividend
target set out in the 2023 Annual Report.
Dividend Timetable
Ex-dividend date
|
6 June
2024
|
Record
date
|
7 June
2024
|
Payment
date
|
28 June
2024
|
This announcement contains
information that is inside information for the purposes of the
Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014.
For further information, please
visit www.jlen.com or contact:
Foresight Group
Chris Tanner
Edward Mountney
Wilna de Villiers
|
+44(0)20 3667 8100
institutionalir@foresightgroup.eu
|
Winterflood Securities Limited
Neil Langford
|
+44(0)20 3100 0000
|
SEC
Newgate
Elisabeth Cowell
Alice Cho
Harry Handyside
|
+44 (0)20 3757 6882
Jlen@secnewgate.co.uk
|
Apex Fund and Corporate Services (Guernsey)
Limited
Matt Lihou
Matt Falla
|
+44(0)20 3530 3600
|
About JLEN
JLEN's investment policy is to
invest in a diversified portfolio of Environmental Infrastructure.
Environmental Infrastructure is defined by the Company as
infrastructure assets, projects and asset-backed businesses that
utilise natural or waste resources or support more environmentally
friendly approaches to economic activity, support the transition to
a low carbon economy or which mitigate the effects of climate
change. Such investments will typically feature one or more of the
following characteristics:
· long-term, predictable
cash flows, which may be wholly or partially inflation-linked cash
flows;
· long-term contracts or
stable and well-proven regulatory and legal frameworks;
or
· well-established
technologies, and demonstrable operational performance
JLEN's aim is to provide investors
with a sustainable, progressive dividend per share, paid quarterly
and to preserve the capital value of the portfolio over the long
term on a real basis. The target dividend for the year to 31 March
2025 is 7.80 pence per share¹. The dividend is payable
quarterly.
JLEN is an Article 9 fund under the
EU Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation and has a transparent
and award winning approach to ESG.
Further details of the Company can
be found on its website www.jlen.com
LEI: 213800JWJN54TFBMBI68
(1) These are targets only and not
profit forecasts. There can be no assurance that these
targets will be met or that the Company will make any distributions
at all.