LEAWOOD, KS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Tortoise announced the launch of an open-end fund, Ecofin Global Renewables Infrastructure Fund (ECOIX), built to capitalize on the energy transition underway to reduce global CO₂ emissions. The fund carries a strong performance track record of nearly five years*, has a AAA MSCI ESG rating (as of August 7, 2020) and is available to U.S. retail and institutional investors through its institutional class shares.

“Our competitive advantage is the investment team experience and we have a track record managing this strategy for nearly five years, delivering double-digit annualized returns with lower risk than the market, while providing a measurable decarbonization impact,” said Michel Sznajer, Portfolio Manager. “This strategy is focused specifically on the rapidly growing migration into renewable and related clean electricity infrastructure as renewables are now the lowest-cost option for new-build electricity capacity in most markets in the world.” Please click here for the fund's standardized performance and beta.

Performance data quoted represents past performance; past performance does not guarantee future results. The investment return and principal value of an investment will fluctuate so that an investor’s shares, when redeemed, may be worth more or less than their original cost. Current performance of the fund may be lower or higher than the performance quoted. Performance data current to the most recent month end may be obtained by calling 855-822-3863.

“Our team has been focused on and investing across the energy transition universe for over a decade,” said Matt Breidert, Senior Portfolio Manager. “We are at the start of a long shift towards clean electricity growing its share within the global energy mix, driven by consumer changes in transportation (electric vehicles), digitization and electrification in commerce, demand from multi-national corporates requiring reduced carbon footprints in their global supply chains, and soon supplying zero-carbon electricity to kick-off the green hydrogen industry. This strategy offers investors an opportunity to capitalize on all of these structural shifts.”

Key reasons to invest:

• Access to the fast-growing decarbonization theme
• Track record for nearly five years of strong performance with lower risk than the market
• Measurable impact on emissions reductions; highest AAA ESG rating from MSCI (as of August 7, 2020)

“At Ecofin, our mission is to identify global challenges in need of capital and create investment strategies that optimize returns to investors and maximize the measurable impact to society,” said Brent Newcomb, President - Ecofin. “Universally, we believe investors are materially underweight climate change and renewables, including the technology driving renewable adoption. Bringing this type of product to U.S. investors was part of our strategic plan when Tortoise acquired Ecofin Limited in 2018.”

To learn more about ECOIX visit ecofininvest.com/ecoix.

About Ecofin

Ecofin unites ecology and finance and has roots back to the early 1990s. Our mission is to generate strong risk-adjusted returns and measurable impacts. We invest in essential assets and services that contribute to more sustainable human ecosystems and communities. We are socially-minded, ESG-attentive investors, successfully harnessing years of expertise investing in social impact, sustainable infrastructure, energy transition and clean water & environment. Our strategies are accessible through a variety of investment solutions and seek to achieve positive impacts that align with UN Sustainable Development Goals by addressing pressing global issues surrounding climate action, clean energy and water, education, healthcare and sustainable communities. For additional information, please visit ecofininvest.com.

*The Ecofin Global Renewables Infrastructure Fund (the Fund) is a newly registered mutual fund and does not have a full calendar year of performance as a mutual fund. Prior performance shown above is for the Ecofin Global Renewables Infrastructure Fund Limited, established in November 2015 (which later changed its name to the Tortoise Global Renewables Infrastructure Fund Limited in May 2019), (the “Predecessor Fund”), an unregistered Cayman Islands limited liability company. The Predecessor Fund was reorganized into the Fund by transferring substantially all of the Predecessor Fund’s assets to the Fund in exchange for Institutional Class shares of the Fund on August 7, 2020, the date that the Fund commenced operations (the “Reorganization”). The Predecessor Fund has been managed in the same style as the Fund. The Sub-Adviser served as the investment adviser to the Predecessor Fund and will be responsible for the portfolio management and trading for the Fund. Each of the Fund’s portfolio managers was a portfolio manager of the Predecessor Fund at the time of the Reorganization. The Fund’s investment objective, policies, guidelines and restrictions are, in all material respects, the same as those of the Predecessor Fund.

Before investing in the fund, investors should consider their investment goals, time horizons and risk tolerance. The fund’s investment objective, risks, charges and expenses must be considered carefully before investing. The summary and statutory prospectus contains this and other important information about the fund and may be obtained by calling 855-822-3863 or visiting www.ecofininvest.com. Read it carefully before investing.

Investing involves risks. Principal loss is possible. The fund is non-diversified, meaning it may concentrate its assets in fewer individual holdings than a diversified fund. Therefore, the fund is more exposed to individual stock volatility than a diversified fund. Investing in specific sectors such as energy infrastructure and renewable energy infrastructure may involve greater risk and volatility than less concentrated investments. If for any taxable year the Fund fails to qualify as a RIC, the Fund’s taxable income will be subject to federal income tax at regular corporate rates. The resulting increase to the Fund’s expenses will reduce its performance and its income available for distribution to shareholders. Investments in foreign companies involve risk not ordinarily associated with investments in securities and instruments of U.S. issuers, including risks related to political, social and economic developments abroad, differences between U.S. and foreign regulatory and accounting requirements, tax risk and market practices, as well as fluctuations in foreign currencies. These risks are greater for investments in emerging markets. The fund invests in small and mid-cap companies, which involve additional risks such as limited liquidity and greater volatility than larger companies. Investments in debt securities typically decrease in value when interest rates rise. This risk is usually greater for longer-term debt securities. The fund may also invest in derivatives including options, futures and swap agreements, which can be highly volatile, illiquid and difficult to value, and changes in the value of a derivative held by the fund may not correlate with the underlying instrument or the fund’s other investments and can include additional risks such as liquidity risk, leverage risk and counterparty risk that are possibly greater than risks associated with investing directly in the underlying investments.

Tortoise Capital Advisors, L.L.C. is the adviser to the Fund and Ecofin Advisors Limited is the sub-adviser. Primary responsibility for the day-to-day management of the Fund’s portfolio is the joint responsibility of Matthew Breidert and Michel Sznajer, both of the Sub-Adviser. Mr. Breidert is a Senior Portfolio Manager of the Sub- Adviser. Mr. Sznajer is a Portfolio Manager of the Sub-Adviser. Each portfolio manager has managed the Fund since its inception in July 2020. Mr. Breidert and Mr. Sznajer were portfolio managers of the Predecessor Fund since its inception in 2015 and since joining the firm in 2016, respectively.

The MSCI ESG rating represents the aggregate ranking of the Fund’s holdings as of 8/7/2020. Certain information ^©2020 MSCI ESG Research LLC. Reproduced by permission; no further distribution.

MSCI ESG Research LLC’s (“MSCI ESG”) Fund Metrics and Ratings (the “Information”) provide environmental, social and governance data with respect to underlying securities within more than 31,000 multi-asset class Mutual Funds and ETFs globally. MSCI ESG is a Registered Investment Adviser under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. MSCI ESG materials have not been submitted to, nor received approval from, the US SEC or any other regulatory body. None of the Information constitutes an offer to buy or sell, or a promotion or recommendation of, any security, financial instrument or product or trading strategy, nor should it be taken as an indication or guarantee of any future performance, analysis, forecast or prediction. None of the Information can be used to determine which securities to buy or sell or when to buy or sell them. The Information is provided “as is” and the user of the Information assumes the entire risk of any use it may make or permit to be made of the Information. The MSCI ESG Fund Ratings is designed to assess the resilience of a fund’s aggregate holdings to long term ESG risks. Highly rated funds consist of issuers with leading or improving management of key ESG risks.

• AAA, AA: Leader- The companies that the fund invests in tend to show strong and/or improving management of financially relevant environmental, social and governance issues. These companies may be more resilient to disruptions arising from ESG events.
• A, BB, BB: Average- The fund invests in companies that tend to show average management of ESG issues, or in a mix of companies with both above-average and below-average ESG risk management.
• B, CCC: Laggard- The fund is exposed to companies that do not demonstrate adequate management of the ESG risks that they face or show worsening management of these issues. These companies may be more vulnerable to disruptions arising from ESG events.

The Fund ESG Rating is calculated as a direct mapping of “Fund ESG Quality Score” to letter rating categories.

• 8.6- 10: AAA
• 7.1- 8.6: AA
• 5.7- 7.1: A
• 4.3- 5.7: BBB
• 2.9- 4.3: BB
• 1.4- 2.9: B
• 0.0- 1.4: CCC

The “Fund ESG Quality Score” assesses the resilience of a fund’s aggregate holdings to long term ESG risks. Highly rated funds consist of issuers with leading or improving management of key ESG risks, based on a granular breakdown of each issuer’s business: its core product or business segments, the locations of its assets or revenues, and other relevant measures such as outsourced production. The “Fund ESG Quality Score” is provided on a 0-10 score, with 0 and 10 being the respective lowest and highest possible fund scores.

The “Fund ESG Quality Score” is assessed using the underlying holding’s “Overall ESG Scores”, “Overall ESG Ratings”, and “Overall ESG Rating Trends”. It is calculated in a series of 3 steps.

Step 1: Calculate the “Fund Weighted Average ESG Score” of the underlying holding’s “Overall ESG Scores”. The Overall ESG Scores represent either the ESG Ratings Final Industry-Adjusted Score or Government Adjusted ESG Score of the issuer. Methodology for the issuer level scores are available in the MSCI ESG Ratings Methodology document.

Step 2: Calculate adjustment % based on fund exposure to “Fund ESG Laggards ()”, “Fund ESG Trend Negative ()”, and “Fund ESG Trend Positive (%)”.

Step 3: Multiply the “Fund Weighted Average ESG Score” by (1 + Adjustment %).

For more information please visit https://www.msci.com/esg-fund-ratings.

Quasar Distributors, LLC, distributor

Safe harbor statement

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or jurisdiction in which such offer or solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the laws of such state or jurisdiction.

Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains certain statements that may include “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, included herein are "forward-looking statements." Although the fund and its adviser and sub-adviser believe that the expectations reflected in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, they do involve assumptions, risks and uncertainties, and these expectations may prove to be incorrect. Actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors, including those discussed in the fund’s reports that are filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release. Other than as required by law, the funds and is adviser and sub-adviser do not assume a duty to update this forward-looking statement.

Contacts

Maggie Zastrow
(913) 981-1020
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