BNRG Gorse Review — Meet the Developer
Cast your mind back to this summer, when Britain experienced a truly well deserved heatwave. It’s the weekend and you have plans — a pub lunch with friends, sharing a jug of Pimms; or maybe a day spent with family, children running through sprinklers and men gathering around the grill. You’re enjoying the glorious feeling of the sun warming your body and making your skin tingle.
It is exactly this feeling that we imagine our solar panels down at Hoo Solar experienced too, as the fantastic weather of summer 2013 helped our first project with BNRG perform particularly well and generate considerably more electricity than predicted.
And now BNRG Gorse is our second solar project with BNRG to create more clean electricity — even when it isn’t warm enough for a BBQ! To celebrate, we spoke to David Maguire about crowdfunding, what it is like to work with Abundance, and what the future may hold.
What was it that made you get into renewable energy development?
I am an environmental scientist by profession and specialised in the renewables field 19 years ago when the industry was still in its infancy! I decided to co-found BNRG in 2007 because I wanted to play a more active part in reducing the human reliance on fossil fuels. It is clear to me that renewables offer the only way to guarantee energy security for future generations and ourselves.
What is the BNRG Gorse project and where is it?
This project is in Kent, located close to our first project with Abundance — Hoo Solar. Last time we worked together, Abundance helped us to successfully raise £385,000 to refinance an existing 249kW solar installation. Because the last project was so successful and there was such high demand, this time we are aiming to raise £730,000 to install two 249kW ground mounted solar arrays at two different sites near Hoo.
Is there anything you are doing differently on the project?
No, essentially this project will be set up and run in exactly the same way as Hoo Solar. With Hoo successfully operating and generating above-predicted returns we do not intend to change anything. Of course, we always strive for improvement but we also believe in the saying ‘if something isn’t broken, don’t fix it’!
Is the Debenture the same structure?
BNRG Gorse is the first project on Abundance to offer an inflation-linked Debenture; this is a major innovation and something we are very excited about. With cost of living rising often faster than income or pensions — renewable energy is ideally placed to offer a solution to this. The feed in tariff, which fixes the price that the project receives for its power, rises in line with the Retail Price Index and with the BNRG Gorse Debenture we are therefore structuring the Debenture so that debenture holders income and capital increases in line with inflation. Hopefully the BNRG Gorse Debenture will provide some comfort for investors who are looking to maintain their spending power over the next 20 years!
Why did you choose to work with Abundance again?
When we worked with Abundance on the Hoo Solar project it became clear to us that they were very professional and knew what they were doing. Their passion for renewable energy also matched our own, making for a great working relationship. So, when we decided we would like to do another project in Kent they were a natural choice.
Why have you chosen to finance through crowdfunding rather than taking a more traditional approach?
Very simply we believe it is a good thing that people can invest directly into renewable energy and want to give more people the opportunity to get involved in the sector. However until recently it was not easy to raise money from the public, but with the emergence of Abundance it is almost as simple for us to raise money from the public as it is to go to the banks or private equity funds, which is great news and means we can play an active role in helping democratize the ownership of renewable energy!
What, in your opinion, makes renewable energy an attractive investment opportunity?
Solar is a very stable resource and therefore a stable generator of electricity, which means predictions of the amount of energy generated can be fairly accurate. This makes it ideal for pension-type payout schemes and those looking for a long-term investment that is less volatile than stocks and shares. It also offers better returns than many other similarly government-backed schemes, partly due to the Feed-in-Tariff, which guarantees a price for the electricity generated for a period of 20 years.
What is it that makes BNRG developments ‘best in class’?
We pride ourselves on our excellent project construction and the quality of the components we use. We also consider a good working relationship and open dialogue with landowners and local communities to be very important, as these are the people who live side by side with the projects and have, in our experience, embraced them.
Looking to the future, does BNRG have any plans to potentially crowdfund larger projects in different geographies?
We have already completed work in a number of different areas, including Europe and the Caribbean. It is exciting and we are always looking for new opportunities to increase the amount of solar energy across the world. With the current astonishing growth of crowdfunding we are eager to see how this could bring about opportunities for us to crowdfund in places outside the UK.
RISK WARNING
As with any investment, there are risks when investing on Abundance. Your invested capital is at risk and any return on your investment depends on the ability of the company or council you have invested in to pay your returns. Investments on Abundance are generally long term and you should be prepared to hold them to maturity. The investments are illiquid and you may not be able to sell them if you need your money back earlier, and their value can rise or fall. Some investments may be secured, but this does not guarantee repayment or your return.
Quoted returns are no guarantee of future returns and past performance is not a guide to future performance. Specific risks will apply in relation to each investment. Please consider all risks before investing and read the Offer Document or Factsheet for each investment. The investments on Abundance include debentures or bonds and peer to peer loans — Abundance’s service in relation to loans is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS).
