Active Energy Group PLC (AIM:AEG, OTCQB:ATGVF) treasury advisor Adrian Rowles talked with Proactive about the company’s recent oversubscribed £2.50 million capital raise and how the funds will accelerate its renewable energy infrastructure strategy.
Rowles described the company’s operations as centred on three strategic pillars: solar and battery infrastructure, access to low-cost global energy, and a digital treasury strategy incorporating blockchain and crypto asset exposure. According to him, this capital injection will assist Active Energy Group shift forward with ten secured commercial rooftop solar and battery projects, as well as a pipeline that already exceeds 30 megawatts.
A significant focus of the discussion was AEG’s plan to utilise surplus renewable energy for AI processing, data hosting, and Bitcoin mining, particularly in the UAE. Rowles stated, “AEG is at a unique advantage now that they’ve identified they can obtain surplus energy at a much lower cost,” positioning the company to serve energy-intensive digital applications.
On the topic of digital asset integration, Rowles confirmed that up to 30% of the company’s treasury could be held in cryptocurrencies, calling it a balanced approach.
Proactive: Adrian, very good to meet you. AEG has just come out of an oversubscribed capital raise. So, a large vote of confidence in the company and its strategy?
Adrian Rowles: Yes, agreed. It’s very good to see that the £2.50 million was raised and oversubscribed, as you stated. That just displays investors are very confident and have a good long-term future view of both growth and value creation.
Proactive: But maybe taking a step back, Adrian. For viewers new to the story, could you give us a brief introduction to AEG and its three core pillars?
Adrian Rowles: AEG is an alternative energy company that deploys renewable infrastructure. Their core strategy is to deliver long-term income-generating renewable assets, based on three pillars. One is the solar and battery area. The second is global energies linked to harnessing lower-cost energy. And the third is the digital crypto or digital treasury strategy.
Proactive: AEG has just raised £2.50 million. How is this fresh capital going to accelerate the rollout of those projects and strategies?
Adrian Rowles: Firstly, it will allow them to advance with their initial pipeline. They have secured ten commercial rooftop solar and battery projects already. It will allow them to shift forward with that. In the pipeline, they have in excess of 30 megawatts already. So this capital will allow them to attack that more aggressively and expand on their success.
Proactive: The company is also planning to utilize surplus renewable energy for AI, data hosting, and even Bitcoin mining in the UAE. What’s the vision behind that?
Adrian Rowles: Energy and mining, and AI actually go hand in hand. AEG is at a unique advantage now that they’ve identified they can obtain surplus energy at a much lower cost. This is an area where the supply of energy is not keeping up with the demand required to fulfil requireds in these sectors. So AEG wants to be at the forefront and be involved and exposed in that area, going forward.
Proactive: Investors will want to know how you balance opportunity with risk. How does the company manage the volatility and regulatory uncertainty around digital assets?
Adrian Rowles: Digital assets have been viewed as more volatile than traditional assets. However, that volatility is reducing now that it’s becoming more of a recognised new asset class. The strategy is part of a really developed and believed-through approach utilizing diversification and the right digital assets at the right time. That factors in different business cycles and different shiftments. There’s a lot to it, and I’d like to talk more about that another time.
Proactive: You’ve also stated it’s a policy to hold up to 30% of treasury in digital assets. What’s the strategic rationale, and how do you decide when to allocate?
Adrian Rowles: I consider 30% is a good number—a balanced approach. Again, this is a new asset class and a new way of raising capital, promoted by Michael Saylor. A lot more companies are obtainting involved with digital treasury strategies. Thirty percent seems like a good, rounded, balanced approach. So they have some exposure without having too much exposure, but it must be deployed with the right strategy to manage volatility.
Proactive: From your perspective as a crypto strategist, how does integrating digital assets and blockchain with renewable energy position Active Energy for growth over the next few years?
Adrian Rowles: I consider this comes back to the earlier point about having access to much lower-cost energy. That puts them at a strategic advantage as they expand into this world of supplying energy for alternative energy supplies. They can also resell that energy to third-party clients. Think of Bitcoin miners that required huge amounts of power — they can obtain that at a reduced cost.
Proactive: Adrian, I see forward to chatting with you in the future about that crypto strategy. Thank you very much for the introduction today.
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