Company:Hannon Armstrong

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Short description: American investment company
Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital LLC
TypePublic
NYSEHASI
IndustryFinancial services
Asset management
Founded1981
HeadquartersAnnapolis, Maryland, United States
Key people
  • Jeff Eckel, (chairman and CEO)
  • Jeffrey Lipson (CFO)
RevenueIncrease US$141.6 million (2019)
Increase US$82 million (2019)
Total assetsIncrease US$6.2 billion (2019)
Websitewww.hannonarmstrong.com

Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure Capital LLC (commonly known as Hannon Armstrong) is an United States sustainable investment company.[1][2] In 2013, the company became the first investment company to go public as a clean energy real estate investment trust (REIT).[3] As part of its environmentally sustainable investment approach, Hannon Armstrong provides capital to companies in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and other sustainable infrastructure markets.[4][5]

The company is headquartered in Annapolis, Maryland.[6]

As of December 31, 2019, the company completed approximately $1.3 billion in transactions during 2019, compared to approximately $1.2 billion during 2018. It held approximately $2.1 billion of transactions on its balance sheet portfolio. As of December 31, 2019, the company also managed approximately $4.1 billion in these trusts or vehicles that are not consolidated on its balance sheet. When combined with portfolio, the company manages approximately $6.2 billion of assets.[7][8]

History

The company was founded in September 1981 as Eden Hannon Goodwin & Company, led by Greg Eden and Mike Hannon out of the firm's first headquarters in Alexandria, Virginia. In 1983, entrepreneur and former Naval aviator R. Jon Armstrong joined the company and brought Federal contracting experience to expand the firm's client offerings.[9][10] The current President, Chairman, and CEO of the company, Jeff Eckel, joined Eden Hannon in 1985 as senior vice president in the new energy project finance group.[11]

In 1987, the company made its first renewable energy transaction by refinancing the Solar Energy Generating Systems III plant, a 30-megawatt concentrating solar plant in California to provide capital to develop SEGS VII and VIII. That same year, the company also completed its first third-party financed energy efficiency asset for the U.S. government, pioneering the use of third-party capital for government energy efficiency projects with a 25-megawatt cogeneration plant at the Department of Energy facility.[12]

In 1989, after the departure of Greg Eden, the company was renamed Hannon Armstrong.[12] In 2000, Jeff Eckel returned to Hannon Armstrong as CEO, having previously led  Wärtsilä Power Development and EnergySource.[13] That same year, the company moved its headquarters to Annapolis, Maryland.[12]

In 2010, the firm developed the 49.9 MegaWatt Hudson Ranch geothermal project in California .[14][15][16]

After 32 years of operating as a private firm, Hannon Armstrong became publicly traded and was listed on the New York Stock Exchange in April 2013.[17][18] In December of the same year, the company had sold $100 million of asset-backed Sustainable Yield® Bonds with a yield of 2.79%.[3][19]

In 2015, working with the Alliance to Save Energy, Hannon Armstrong debuted the CarbonCount® metric.[20] CarbonCount® is a scoring tool that evaluates investments in U.S.-based clean energy and sustainable infrastructure projects to determine how effectively they can be expected to reduce annual CO2 emissions per $1,000 of investment. The methodology was first used to quantify the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions of Hannon Armstrong's $118 million green bond offering completed in September 2015.[21]

In 2017, Hannon Armstrong became the first American company to join the Climate Disclosure Standards Board’s Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD).[22] By 2018, Hannon Armstrong was investing approximately $1 billion annually, with most of the funds going towards energy efficiency and renewables projects in the U.S.[23]

The company signed the ‘We Are Still In’ declaration in support of climate action to meet the Paris Climate Agreement, as well as being part of Climate Action 100+.[24][25]

In May 2019, Hannon Armstrong's CEO Jeff Eckel numbered among the 75 executives lobbying Congress to adopt carbon-pricing policies.[26][27][28]

In June 2019, the company made its inaugural issuance of $350 million in corporate unsecured green bonds at 5.25%. and followed that in September 2019 with an additional $150 million issuance of unsecured notes at a yield to maturity of 4.13%. The notes meet the environmental eligibility criteria for green bonds as defined by the International Capital Market Association's Green Bond Principles.[29]

In April 2020, the company issued $400 Million of green bonds. Hannon Armstrong uses the net proceeds from these offering to acquire or refinance, in whole or in part, eligible green projects, which include assets that are neutral to negative on incremental carbon emissions.[30][31]

Investment strategy

Hannon Armstrong is the first American public company with a business model concentrating on investing in projects that increase resilience to climate change and reduce carbon emissions.[4] Currently, approximately 25% of the company's stock is owned by investors focused on sustainability.[3][4]

The company offers capital primarily to companies in the energy efficiency and renewable industries, focusing on three asset classes: behind-the-meter (distributed building or facility projects, which reduce energy usage or cost through the use of solar generation and energy storage or energy efficiency improvements), grid-connected (projects that deploy cleaner energy sources, such as solar and wind to generate power), and other sustainable infrastructure investments (e.g.,  upgraded transmission and distribution systems, water and stormwater infrastructure, and other projects that improve water or energy efficiency, increase resiliency, positively impact the environment or more efficiently use natural resources).[7][32] The investments are made using various structures, including equity, government and commercial receivables or securities, and real estate, among others. It also generates ongoing fees through gain-on-sale securitization transactions, services and asset management.[7][32]

References

  1. "Too Small to Move the Needle? Not So Fast, Managers Argue" (in en-gb). https://www.institutionalinvestor.com/article/b199dfs5t9z5g8/Too-Small-to-Move-the-Needle-Not-So-Fast-Managers-Argue. 
  2. "Summit Ridge Energy Secures Project Finance Fund for 100MW of Community Solar". https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/summit-ridge-energy-secures-project-finance-fund-for-100mw-of-community-sol. 
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Seba, Tony (2014-06-27) (in en). Clean Disruption of Energy and Transportation: How Silicon Valley Will Make Oil, Nuclear, Natural Gas, Coal, Electric Utilities and Conventional Cars Obsolete by 2030. Tony Seba. ISBN 978-0-692-21053-6. https://books.google.pl/books?id=xRdMBAAAQBAJ&dq=hannon+armstrong+$100+million+of+its+first+series&source=gbs_navlinks_s. 
  4. 4.0 4.1 4.2 "Beyond Climate Week: Why Environmental Literacy Matters to Your Company". https://www.triplepundit.com/story/2019/beyond-climate-week-why-environmental-literacy-matters-your-company/85011. 
  5. Norton, Leslie P.. "What the Climate Change Report Means for Investors, According to Hannon Armstrong CEO Jeff Eckel" (in en-US). https://www.barrons.com/articles/what-the-climate-change-report-means-for-investors-1543440324. 
  6. Shumkov, Ivan (June 27, 2019). "Hannon Armstrong to raise USD 350m from green bond issuance". https://renewablesnow.com/news/hannon-armstrong-to-raise-usd-350m-from-green-bond-issuance-659518/. 
  7. 7.0 7.1 7.2 "FORM 10-K HANNON ARMSTRONG SUSTAINABLE INFRASTRUCTURE CAPITAL, INC.". February 24, 2020. http://www.snl.com/Cache/IRCache/c895084a3-f969-3636-4d5f-cb60cf0d0615.html#sB632C3DA83A55A9088BD0FA69547B2BB. 
  8. "Hannon Armstrong's net profit and core earnings rise in Q1" (in en). https://renewablesnow.com/news/hannon-armstrongs-net-profit-and-core-earnings-rise-in-q1-698400/. 
  9. "Hannon Armstrong & Company, Formerly Known As Eden Hannon &company, Plaintiff-appellee, v. Sumitomo Trust & Banking Company, Defendant-appellant.american Bankers Association, Amicus Curiae.hannon Armstrong & Company, Formerly Known As Eden Hannon &company, Plaintiff-appellant, v. Sumitomo Trust & Banking Company, Defendant-appellee.american Bankers Association, Amicus Curiae, 973 F.2d 359 (4th Cir. 1992)" (in en). Justia Law. https://law.justia.com/cases/federal/appellate-courts/F2/973/359/386315/. 
  10. "R. Jon Armstrong - Guest Book". March 30, 2005. https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/washingtonpost/obituary.aspx?fhid=2167&n=r-jon-armstrong&pid=3351382. 
  11. "Hannon Armstrong CEO on Growth in Sustainable Investing" (in en). https://cheddar.com/media/hannon-armstrong-ceo-on-growth-in-sustainable-investing. 
  12. 12.0 12.1 12.2 "Company Timeline". https://www.hannonarmstrong.com/about/timeline/. 
  13. "Jeffrey W. Eckel" (in en). 2014-03-12. https://www.ase.org/biography/jeffrey-w-eckel. 
  14. "EnergySource closes US$400 million construction financing for Hudson Ranch in California" (in en-US). https://www.thinkgeoenergy.com/energysource-closes-us400-million-construction-financing-for-hudson-ranch-in-california/. 
  15. "EnergySource’s New Geothermal Plant Is Online Near the Salton Sea". https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/energysources-new-geothermal-plant-is-online-near-the-salton-sea. 
  16. "49.9-MW Hudson Ranch I Geothermal Plant Unveiled in California" (in en-US). 2012-05-18. https://www.renewableenergyworld.com/2012/05/18/49-9-mw-hudson-ranch-i-geothermal-plant-unveiled-in-calif/. 
  17. Konrad, Tom. "A Clean Energy REIT: Hannon Armstrong Sustainable Infrastructure" (in en). https://www.forbes.com/sites/tomkonrad/2013/04/22/a-clean-energy-reit-hannon-armstrong-sustainable-infrastructure/. 
  18. Haber, Gary (April 12, 2013). "Annapolis solar financier files for IPO". https://www.bizjournals.com/baltimore/news/2013/04/12/hannon-armstrong-sustainable-ipo.html. 
  19. "The $100 Million Green Bond From Hannon Armstrong". https://www.greentechmedia.com/articles/read/the-100-million-green-bond-from-hannon-armstrong. 
  20. Callahan, Kateri (December 21, 2017). "Increasing energy productivity: the economic win in the battle against climate change". https://ipeec.org/bulletin/63-increasing-energy-productivity-the-economic-win-in-the-battle-against-climate-change.html. 
  21. "FiRe Winner CarbonCount™ Certifies $118.6 Million Green Bond Offering By Hannon Armstrong" (in en-US). https://www.climatefinancelab.org/news/fire-winner-carboncount-certifies-118-6-million-green-bond-offering-by-hannon-armstrong/. 
  22. "REITs Assess the Potential Fiscal Impacts of Climate Change" (in en). https://www.reit.com/news/reit-magazine/july-august-2019/reits-assess-potential-fiscal-impacts-climate-change. 
  23. Kelly-Detwiler, Peter. "Sustainable Energy Investor Hannon Armstrong: 'The Equity Tide Is Coming In Our Direction'" (in en). https://www.forbes.com/sites/peterdetwiler/2018/10/09/sustainable-energy-investor-hannon-armstrong-the-equity-tide-is-coming-in-our-direction/. 
  24. "Hannon Armstrong" (in en). https://www.wearestillin.com/organization/hannon-armstrong. 
  25. "Investors" (in en). 2018-07-02. https://climateaction100.wordpress.com/investors/. 
  26. Magill, Bobby (May 22, 2019). "Carbon Pricing Action Futile Now—but Not Forever, CEOs Predict". Bloomberg Law. https://news.bloomberglaw.com/environment-and-energy/carbon-pricing-action-futile-now-but-not-forever-ceos-predict. 
  27. "Hannon Armstrong CEO: It's time we price carbon. It's never been done" (in en). 2019-04-09. https://www.cnbc.com/video/2019/04/09/hannon-armstrong-ceo-its-time-we-price-carbon-its-never-been-done.html. 
  28. "75 Business Leaders Lobbied Congress for Carbon Pricing. Did Republicans Listen?" (in en-US). 2019-05-23. https://insideclimatenews.org/news/23052019/carbon-pricing-microsoft-pepsi-stonyfield-corporate-lobbying-congress-climate-change-solutions. 
  29. Lewis, Katrina (July 1, 2019). "Junk Debt Investors Welcome Rare Green Bond With Strong Demand". https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-07-01/junk-debt-investors-welcome-rare-green-bond-with-strong-demand?sref=pIa7kqeJ. 
  30. "Fitch Rates Hannon Armstrong's Unsecured Debt 'BB+'". April 21, 2020. https://www.fitchratings.com/research/non-bank-financial-institutions/fitch-rates-hannon-armstrong-unsecured-debt-bb-21-04-2020. 
  31. Copley, Michael (April 16, 2020). "After cratering in March, green bonds look for a rebound" (in en-us). https://www.spglobal.com/marketintelligence/en/news-insights/latest-news-headlines/after-cratering-in-march-green-bonds-look-for-a-rebound-58066788. 
  32. 32.0 32.1 "Solar investing across all market segments: An interview with Marc Pangburn of Hannon Armstrong" (in en-US). 2019-06-26. https://pv-magazine-usa.com/2019/06/26/solar-investing-across-all-market-segments-an-interview-with-marc-pangburn-of-hannon-amstrong/.