BDO’s Mergers & Acquisitions team acted as sponsor and financial advisor to Hazel Renewable Energy VCT1 and VCT2 on a £59.6m buy-out of other investors in six solar generation companies in which the two VCTs held an existing investment. The team advised the directors of each VCT on the terms of the transaction which had been arranged by the companies’ investment manager, Hazel Capital.
The funding for the buy-out was provided by a £65m long term loan, the capital for which was raised in the bond markets and represented a lower cost source of finance. The loan also provided some additional capital for further investments by the companies and allowed for the payment of a future special dividend.
In order to complete this novel transaction, it required shareholders to approve a change to the investment policy of the companies and the BDO team provided advice and managed the discussions with the FCA in relation to this.
"BDO Corporate Finance team delivered a high quality service with an understanding of what we were trying to achieve throughout the transaction. Their advice and discussions with the FCA were essential in order for this transaction to complete as there were a number of unique and difficult issues. We would have no hesitation in recommending BDO’s Corporate Finance team following this experience".
Bozkurt Aydinoglu, Partner, Hazel Capital