John Laing Group - Sale of Australian wind farm assets

John Laing Group (JLG) has announced the sale of its Australian wind farm assets for A$285m (£157m), a valuation described as a ‘small uplift’ to book value. This news is significant for two reasons: 1) it provides some reassurance that the book value of JLG’s renewable assets is now relatively conservative; and 2) accounting for about a third of its renewable portfolio, the disposal represents material progress on JLG’s strategy to exit this market. We make no change to our numbers ahead of the company’s Q3 trading statement expected next week.