Energy infrastructure and private equity manager Foresight Group has reported strong growth in the six months to 30 September 2021.
During this time Assets under Management (AUM) stood at £8.1bn (€9.5bn) and Funds under Management (FUM) of £6bn at 30 September 2021, equating to an annualised growth rate of 25% and 34% respectively in the period
Retail net inflows during the six-month period were back to similar levels seen in the six-month period pre-pandemic, which gives the Board further confidence for the outlook for FY2022, Foresight said.
The investor experienced strong capital deployment across its core business areas of infrastructure and private equity with £295m deployed during the period compared with £206m for the same six-month period last year.
It also successfully closed Foresight Energy Infrastructure Partners (FEIP), with total commitments of €851m secured, 70% ahead of original target
The board added that group revenue and core EBITDA expectations for the full year to 31 March 2022 are unchanged
Executive chairman Bernard Fairman said: “The last six months have continued to build on the positive momentum we have seen since Foresight’s listing in February.
“We have experienced substantial growth in FUM as a result of strong retail net inflows plus further institutional fund closes and together with the near-term pipeline of new fund launches and deployment, this gives the Board confidence in achieving the Group’s full year FY2022 targets.
“The current volatility in power pricing in the UK and beyond has provided some positive momentum for Foresight’s balanced portfolio of infrastructure assets.
“More broadly it highlights the need for further acceleration of the transition to a reliable, resilient and low carbon energy system, a space in which Foresight has established itself as a leader.
“Foresight owns and operates c. £4bn of electricity generating assets.
“Much of the production is either fixed price income from renewable obligation certificates or sold forward at fixed prices.
“However, c. 15% is benefitting from the near quadrupling of electricity prices with a further c. 25% likely to similarly benefit as their fixes expire during the next two years, should electricity prices remain elevated.
“Electricity generating assets are valued using third party power curves which continue to maintain that electricity will revert to its long-term average of £40-£50 per MWh after about a year.
“The current market dynamics provide potential significant upside to these curves, which would benefit Foresight over the medium term.
“At the upcoming COP26 event, we expect world leaders to announce new targets aimed at tackling climate change.
“These targets should provide even more impetus to our strategy and business model and will further underpin Foresight’s considerable growth potential.”