Bluefield Solar Income Fund’s underlying earnings rose 14% to £11.6m in the second half of last year as output exceeded expectations.
The fund’s UK solar parks generated 185.1 gigawatt-hours of electricity in the period, or 4.6% more than it forecast.
The investor completed six acquisitions in the six months, taking installed capacity to 424.3MW from 401.2MW.
It signed a long-term financing deal with Aviva Investors in September and raised £60.6m in October following a placement of shares.
A first interim dividend of 3.25 pence per share was paid in November and a payment of 7.25 pence is targeted for the full year.
“I am pleased to announce another strong set of results with positive news across a broad set of measures,” chairman John Rennocks said.
“The long-term financing agreement with Aviva Investors, signed in September, gives the company the strongest platform from which to deliver, over the long term, sector-leading underlying earnings and dividends.”
“The company now has the lowest reported cost of debt financing in the sector, the lowest investment adviser fee and the highest dividend.”
Image: SXC
