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NAV, Dividend and Investment Adviser Conduct

9th Sep 2026 07:00

RNS Number : 9115T
Aquila European Renewables PLC
09 September 2026
 

9 September 2026

Aquila European Renewables plc

Net Asset Value, Dividend and Investment Adviser Conduct

The Company's Net Asset Value (NAV) as at 30 June 2026 was EUR 146.1 million or 38.6 cents per Ordinary Share (31 December 2025: EUR 214.3 million or 56.7 cents per Ordinary Share). NAV decreased by EUR 68.2 million over the period. Of that amount, EUR 54.4 million was returned to Shareholders as capital under the B Share Scheme, equivalent to 14.39 cents per Ordinary Share. Net of the return of capital, NAV declined by EUR 13.8 million, representing a NAV total return of (6.4%) per Ordinary Share over the six months ended 30 June 2026 (six months ended 30 June 2025: (10.9%)).

Investment Adviser Conduct

The Company's Investment Adviser is Aquila Capital Investmentgesellschaft mbH ("ACI"), a wholly owned subsidiary of Commerzbank AG. On numerous occasions the Board has asked ACI to confirm that its valuations give a true and fair view of the Company's net assets. To date, the only confirmation the Board has received from ACI is the following:

"The valuations were prepared in good faith based on the information available to the Valuation Team at the valuation date and remain, based on the information currently available to the Valuation Team, appropriate."

The Board does not consider this a satisfactory answer to a straightforward question, and shareholders should treat ACI's valuation of the portfolio with a significant degree of caution. The Board's concern is heightened by the fact that an offer for the Company's assets, made by ACI on behalf of other funds it manages, was pitched at a material discount to this valuation.

 Acting as the Company's Investment Adviser, ACI has declined to provide the Board with any recommendation or analysis of that offer, and this has not been reflected in the 30 June 2026 NAV. The Board considers this to represent a clear conflict of interest which ACI has not adequately addressed.

The Board is further concerned that ACI is not committing sufficient resource to support the Company through its managed wind-down. In particular, delays attributable to ACI in supporting completion of due diligence are placing potential sales of the Company's assets at risk, to the detriment of shareholders who are relying on an orderly, value-maximising realisation process.

Separately, and notwithstanding the concerns set out above, ACI has issued a formal notice threatening legal proceedings against the Company in respect of disputed fees. The Board considers ACI's conduct, taken as a whole, to fall well short of the standard shareholders are entitled to expect of an Investment Adviser during a managed wind-down.

Robert Naylor, Chairman, said:

"The Investment Adviser cannot have it both ways. It is charging this Company fees on valuations it will not confirm are true and fair, while at the same time seeking to acquire the Company's assets, on behalf of other funds it manages, at a material discount to that same valuation. Its unwillingness to commit adequate resource is now obstructing other buyers from completing due diligence on assets our shareholders need to see realised and it is simultaneously threatening this Company with legal proceedings over fees that remain firmly in dispute. Shareholders are entitled to ask why."

Key drivers of the NAV movement in H1 2026:

· Power price forecasts showed further reductions in the Iberian markets, while forecasts for the Nordic markets were broadly unchanged. On a portfolio-weighted basis, movements in power price curves contributed a reduction of approximately 5.4% in net asset value over the period, comprising approximately 6.0% from the Iberian markets and an increase of approximately 0.6% from the Nordic markets.

· Operating performance below budget across the portfolio, together with a provision recognised at The Rock, contributed a reduction of approximately 1.5% in net asset value. Total portfolio production in the six months ended 30 June 2026 was 21.1% below budget. Solar PV production was 31.6% below budget, attributable in particular to grid curtailment at the Spanish investments, where approximately 30% of potential production was restricted by the transmission system operator at Albeniz and Tiza as a result of network saturation, and to several hours of negative electricity market prices during which the parks do not produce. Wind power production was 10.7% below budget. Olhava underperformed by 48.0%, reflecting lower availability in the first quarter together with the asset's management of its exposure to low market prices and balancing costs, while The Rock produced 10.0% above budget. The availability shortfall at Olhava in the first quarter may give rise to compensation from the O&M provider under the availability guarantee. No such compensation is reflected in the 30 June valuation.

· In addition, a non-material provision has been recognised at The Rock in respect of possible negative tax effects arising from the litigation proceeds received in 2025; the related assessment has not yet been received.

· Updated refinancing assumptions for the Spanish investments contributed a reduction of approximately 1.2% in net asset value, principally at Greco, where the revised assumptions accounted for a reduction of approximately 5.5% in the value of that investment.

· The portfolio discount rate increased from 10.0% to 10.2%, driven by rising interest rates and an increase in the risk premium for Olhava. The effect of the higher discount rate was more than offset by the unwinding of the discount over the two quarters since 31 December 2025, with valuation effects contributing an increase of approximately 3.0% in net asset value over the period and inflation assumptions a further increase of approximately 1.0%.

Asset Update

On 22 May 2026, The Rock completed the refinancing of its EUR 80 million senior secured green bonds with a new five-year bullet issue. The new bonds carry a floating interest rate of three-month EURIBOR plus 4.25% p.a., against a margin of 3.60% p.a. on the original bonds issued in 2021, reflecting changed market conditions. Three-month EURIBOR exposure is subject to a cap and floor of 0.72% and 0.35% respectively through an interest rate collar. The higher cost of the new bonds relative to the assumptions previously applied contributed a reduction of approximately 0.6% in net asset value.

Olhava remained in lock-up following the breaches of the financial covenants of its senior debt facility. Constructive discussions with the lender have concluded in an agreement under which an additional EUR 0.7 million of shareholder loan will be provided during the second half of 2026, and under which the debt service reserve account balance is set at EUR 1.6 million, below the level of EUR 2.2 million required under the loan documentation. Both tranches of the facility were repriced in June at an annual rate of 3.377%. Balancing costs in Finland have eased since May, with Fingrid reducing balance-service fees and introducing a revised imbalance pricing methodology in June, although the 30 June valuation continues to reflect the higher assumptions used by market advisers. Together, the revised debt service reserve requirement and the higher balancing cost assumptions contributed a reduction of approximately 0.4% in net asset value.

Albeniz remained in breach of its DSCR covenant as at 30 June 2026, following the breach as at 31 December 2025. As the Spanish investments are cross collateralised under a single facility, the breach prevented cash distributions from any of them during the period. Discussions with the lender regarding a waiver continue. Albeniz was also materially affected by its baseload power purchase agreement, which settles against the spread between baseload prices and captured solar prices; the widening of that spread through the period meant the contracted position detracted from rather than supported revenues.

On 5 June 2026 the Hålogaland Court of Appeal ruled that the original licence and expropriation decisions for The Rock wind farm are invalid, concluding that the authorities did not carry out a sufficiently thorough assessment of the impact on Sami reindeer herding. The Court expressly stated that the ruling does not require the wind farm to be shut down or dismantled and that operations can continue while the matter is reconsidered by the authorities. The Court did not find that the project violates Article 27 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and concluded that the identified procedural deficiencies do not automatically mean that new licences must be refused. The Investment Adviser is evaluating whether to appeal to the Norwegian Supreme Court or to pursue a renewed licensing process with the Ministry.

Dividend

As previously announced, the Board of Aquila European Renewables plc intends to continue paying dividends covered by earnings and considering the Company's liquidity position, in order to maintain the Company's investment trust status. However, as it pursues the managed wind-down, the Board is unable to provide forward guidance as to the level of dividend for the year ahead. Shareholders should also note that the Board is no longer seeking to smooth the level of dividend over a financial year to reduce the impact of the seasonality of earnings and that, in addition, the level of dividend payments is expected to decline as assets are realised, gearing is reduced and capital is returned to shareholders.

The Board wishes to announce that no dividend is recommended in respect of Q2 2026. The cash generated by the Company's investments and available for upstreaming to the Company remained under significant pressure during the period. Olhava's lender continued to prohibit payments to shareholders, and the cross-collateralised nature of the Spanish facility prevented any distribution from the Spanish investments following the covenant breach at Albeniz. Ourique made a shareholder loan interest payment of approximately EUR 0.7 million in June. There may be further calls on the Company's capital to support investments, including the additional shareholder loan agreed in respect of Olhava.

Capital returns and realisations

Following the completion of the sale of the Company's Greek asset (Desfina) on 13 March 2026 for a total consideration of approximately EUR 26 million, the Company completed its second capital distribution to Shareholders under the approved B Share Scheme, totalling approximately EUR 20.4 million, on 1 April 2026. Together with the first distribution of approximately EUR 34 million in January 2026, capital returned to Shareholders in the year to date amounts to approximately EUR 54.4 million. The Company's portfolio now comprises seven investments across Finland, Norway, Portugal and Spain.

 

LEI: 213800UKH1TZIC9ZRP41

 

Enquiries

Apex Listed Companies Services (UK) Limited

(Company Secretary)

 

+44 (0) 20 3327 9720

Deutsche Numis (Corporate Broker)

Hugh Jonathan

George Shiel

 

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