Bluefield Solar Income Fund Limited (LON: BSIF) completed a £300 million refinancing for its 359-megawatt (MW) solar photovoltaic (PV) portfolio, jointly owned with GLIL Infrastructure. This transaction replaces approximately £214 million of existing inflation-linked debt with £297 million of fixed-rate debt at an all-in rate of 5.8%. Consequently, the all-in cost of the company’s debt rises slightly to around 3.8%, up from 3.4% in September 2024. The new debt matures in December 2035, in line with the subsidy period of the assets.
Portfolio composition and ownership structure
The portfolio consists of 69 solar PV projects, 183 MW of which are supported by Feed-in Tariff (FiT) subsidies, 128 MW by Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROCs), and 48 MW on a merchant basis. Bluefield Solar holds just over 25% of the portfolio, with GLIL Infrastructure owning the balance.
Use of funds and strategic initiatives
This transaction raises approximately £21 million for Bluefield Solar. Taken together with the successful sale of 112 MW of solar capacity in September 2024 as part of the strategic partnership with GLIL, it brings the total recycled capital returned to the company to around £89 million since the partnership began in January 2024. To date, £50.5 million of the proceeds from the 112 MW sale has been used to repay part of the company’s Revolving Credit Facility (RCF), £10.6 million has supported the company’s share buyback programme, £6.2 million has been invested in the construction of Mauxhall and the development pipeline, and £1.5 million has been allocated to capital expenditure (CapEx) works on the company’s operating portfolio.
Financial outlook and future development
Following the refinancing, the company’s total outstanding debt stands at £588 million, of which the RCF balance is £133.5 million. The company’s leverage remains at approximately 44% of Gross Asset Value, based on the company’s most recent unaudited Net Asset Value (NAV) as of September 2024.
The company’s Interim Results will be released on Thursday, February 27, 2025.
John Scott, Chairman of Bluefield Solar, said: “We have worked closely with GLIL and our lenders to complete this refinancing at an attractive price, enabling further capital to be returned to the Company to support future RCF repayments and allowing the continued funding of the Company’s highly attractive development pipeline.”
