Pioneer Energy announce record dividend to Trust

Pioneer Energy announce today a record dividend to owner and local community funder, Central Lakes Trust.

A total dividend of $10m was announced, which is $1.2m more than anticipated for the financial year end 2019.

“Pioneer Energy has had an outstanding year. The trust’s annual grant budget now at approximately $9m comes from the prudent and diversified investment of the trust’s assets, worth $388m. The dividend and the excellent performance of Pioneer will certainly have a significant impact into our community,” Trust Chair, Linda Robertson says.
Pioneer Energy forms a significant portion of Central Lakes Trust investment portfolio at 38%. The trust has a diversified portfolio of investments, but has retained 100% ownership of the energy company since inception in 2000.

The trust’s origins hail from the government’s electricity reforms of the 1990’s. The then, Otago Central Electric Power Trust sold their lines business and retained the generation business, now Pioneer Energy. The funds from the sale of the lines business and the assets in the generation business were bestowed to Central Lakes Trust.

“We are very proud of our partnership with Pioneer Energy and the award-winning work they carry out. As you can imagine their success is integral to the work of the trust and we look forward to continuing to strengthen that relationship,” Robertson says.

Pioneer Energy Chair Stuart Heal concurs, “Pioneer are privileged to have the support of Central Lakes Trust in continuing to grow our business nationally in both scale and diversity for the benefit of our community. It is great to see the support we receive from our local community with more and more joining Pioneer as customers.”

Pioneer Energy owns and operates a diverse portfolio of energy assets, products and investments throughout New Zealand. It generates energy from water, wind and waste, providing renewable energy and energy efficiency solutions. They also develop, own and operate innovative, clean energy plant for New Zealand businesses.

“By developing new energy facilities, like the local Upper Fraser hydro generation scheme, expanding our wood fuel business and increasing scale nationwide, we create new job opportunities in our community,” says Pioneer Energy Chief Executive Fraser Jonker.
Jonker continues, “Pioneer has supplied renewable power to New Zealand business and communities for more than 80 years and in the past 10 years we have diversified our energy service capabilities to supply both heat and power markets.”
Trust Chief Executive Susan Finlay states, “Over the last financial year Pioneer have developed a 10-year strategic plan which includes a range of innovative development projects, that are both environmentally sound and sustainable into the future,”

Finlay says, “It is this sound vision which has seen the trust provide a long-term preference share facility to support these development projects,” she says.

The preference share facility reflects Pioneer’s initiative to seek out growth opportunities and diversity, ultimately strengthening the trust’s balance sheet.

“Through several strategic investment partnerships, Pioneer has access to a continued pipeline of growth options. These growth options will contribute to the development of a sustainable energy future for New Zealand," Jonker added.

The annual dividend to the trust is distributed back into the community in the form of charitable grants to support a wide range of projects and services. In the past 19 years the Trust has received dividends from Pioneer Energy that total over $80m.

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