Osborne Clarke advise JLEN Environmental Assets Group which has reached agreement to dispose of a 51% stake in six anaerobic digestion facilities

Bristol lawyers at Osborne Clarke have advised JLEN, the listed environmental infrastructure fund, which has reached an agreement for the sale of 51% of a portfolio of six gas-to-grid anaerobic digestion (AD) facilities to Future Biogas for £68.1 million.

JLEN will continue to own 49% of the AD Portfolio, which has a combined generating capacity of 38MW, as well as its interests in three further AD assets which are not part of the agreement.

International legal practice Osborne Clarke advised JLEN with a corporate team led by partner Chris Yeo and senior associate Hannah Stevens. They were supported by partners Erika Jupe and Tracey Wright and senior associate Helena Zaba on tax. Partner Duncan Parker and trainee Madeleine Begg advised on construction elements. They are all based in Osborne Clarke's Bristol office.

Future Biogas is a specialist developer and has been the operator of the AD Portfolio since the assets were acquired by the Company between 2017 to 2019. The partial disposal provides a greater alignment of interests between JLEN and Future Biogas, creating the potential for further asset enhancements and life extensions beyond the current Renewable Heat Incentive (RHI) subsidy. These initiatives are expected to deliver uplifts to the valuation of JLEN's remaining holding in the AD Portfolio over time.

The AD Portfolio is located in the East of England and the AD assets have been operational since 2013 - 2016. All of the projects benefit from a RHI and Feed-in Tariff subsidy.

Osborne Clarke has an established and well-respected position as one of the leading legal practices advising on renewable energy projects and transactions. For over 20 years, it has helped clients to seize new opportunities and meet the challenges of making energy generation clean, affordable and secure. The combination of the international team’s experience and understanding of the energy sector means they are regularly called upon to support businesses on all aspects of their commercial, regulatory, corporate, finance and construction legal needs.