Solar Energy Companies I – VI
By taking over the management of a former administrator who went bankrupt, we provided assistance to 400 Danish owners of 6 Danish AIFs Solar Energy Companies I-IV, which managed 18 financially stressed solar plants in Italy.
6 Danish companies had invested in an Italian fund, investing in 18 solar plants across Italy.
The Danish administrator ran into problems, and as a result, the companies suddenly needed a new administrator to ensure compliance with Danish legislation.
The company had an incredibly complex and opaque structure. In addition, poor local maintenance had caused the solar installations to be under pressure, making the situation even more complicated and frustrating for the owners.
As Momentum is not a registered AIFM, we entered into a partnership with Alternative Equity Partners A/S (AEP) in Copenhagen. AEP specializes in fund administration for companies regulated by the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority.
Momentum specializes in physical administration. The combination of these two companies’ expertise proved to be a good solution for the owners, and we were appointed as the new administrators in June 2017.
Since we took over the administration, there have been regular meetings between Momentum/AEP, the administrators and operators of the solar plants in Italy, lawyers, etc.
We pave the way to the future
We have created transparency and optimized the setup by “moving closer” to the Italian administrator. We have analyzed the cash flows and contracts that the Italian administrator has entered into, and we continuously challenge the local administrator to implement better solutions and improve free cash flow.
The fund paid out dividends for the first time in 4 years, and our goal is to significantly improve the local administration of the fund in order to pay out annual dividends from the fund to the owners in Denmark. It’s a very complex case, but we’ve already improved administration and reduced costs. In addition, we are continuously working to improve the production level of the solar plants and further reduce costs in order to normalize the situation.
Moving forward together
“The partnership between Momentum and AEP has brought much success. Both parties contribute with their skills and experience – Momentum with their practical experience in managing solar energy projects, and AEP with their experience in managing AIF regulated funds, in compliance with financial authorities such as AIFM. It is an ongoing process, but significant changes are being implemented to improve the situation for investors in Denmark as well as in Italy.”
Kim Madsen, CEO