Solar asset management firm Bluefield Solar Income Fund (BSIF) has diversified into feed-in tariff (FiT) supported projects with a £6 million acquisition deal and taken on its first commercial rooftop install.
BSIF will take on 28 separate installation receiving FiT payments after entering into sale and purchase agreements for Bluefield EIS Solar, Bluefield Kite and Bluefield Peregrine.
The company said it believed the acquisitions would be beneficial to shareholders by giving it greater access to “attractive” FiT revenue which is “fully in line” with Bluefield’s investment objectives. Currently more than 97% of Bluefield’s portfolio consists of RO-supported projects.
BSIF also lauded the reduced exposure to fluctuating power prices with between 83% and 89% of the assets’ revenue derived from the FiT, which is fully RPI indexed.
The Solar EIS project comprises a 463kWp commercial rooftop project in Corby, Northamptonshire which was connected in July 2011, whereas Bluefield Peregrine’s portfolio includes nine PV projects installed on various Thames Water Utilities sites across south and west London with a combined capacity of 430kWp.
Bluefield Kite’s portfolio comprises 19 separate installations with a total capacity of 824kWp. Included in the portfolio is a 50kWp rooftop installation on the Millennium Seed Bank, as well as 18 further Thames Water Utilities installations on sites in Oxfordshire and Gloucestershire.
The deals have been purchased using BSIF’s revolving credit facility provided by RBS and shift additional assets owned by the wider Bluefield Group to under BSIF’s ownership, taking BSIF’s portfolio of solar PV installations to 59.