Bluefield Solar Income Fund (LSE:BSIF) said it has generated £89 million from capital recycling after completing a refinancing and selling a portion of solar capacity.
The solar-focused income fund said it refinanced a 359MW solar portfolio jointly owned with GLIL Infrastructure, replacing roughly £214 million of inflation-linked debt with £297 million of fixed-rate debt at an all-in rate of 5.8%.
The all-in cost of debt across the company has increased to 3.8% from 3.4% in September, with the new debt due to mature at the end of 2035, in line with the subsidy period of the assets in the portfolio.
Bluefield said the transaction raises around £21 million for the company, which along with September's sale of 112MW of solar capacity with GLIL, results in roughly £89 million being returned to the company since the partnership began last January.
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."
The investment trust has used £50.5 million of the proceeds from the sale to pay down bank debt, £10.6 million was spent on share buybacks, £6.2 million was invested in the construction of the Mauxhall Farm Energy Park and the development pipeline, and £1.5 million spent on capital expenditure works on operating assets.
Bluefield said it would spend the remaining £40 million, including reserves of £20.3 million, on further bank debt repayments, progressing the pipeline or enabling future share buybacks.
A further sale of "limited" elements of the ready-to-build pipeline is currently in progress, it added, which forms the third phase of the GLIL partnership.
Total debt outstanding is £588 million, the investment trust said, of which the bank facility represents £133.5 million, with leverage standing at 44% of September's gross asset value.