Brookfield Renewable Power Fund (formerly Great Lakes Hydro Income Fund) Announces Closing of Strategic Transaction and Name Change

GATINEAU, Quebec, August 31, 2009 (GLH.UN) - Brookfield Renewable Power Fund (formerly Great Lakes Hydro Income Fund) (the “Fund”) is pleased to announce today the closing of the previously announced transaction (the “Transaction”) resulting in the Fund’s acquisition of 15 hydroelectric stations and one soon-to-be-constructed wind power project from Brookfield Renewable Power Inc. (“BRPI”), and an increase in the price BRPI pays the Fund for power generated at the Fund’s Lièvre and Mississagi facilities. As previously announced, the Transaction was approved by over 98% of the votes cast by minority unitholders of the Fund at a special meeting of unitholders held on August 19, 2009.

In connection with the Transaction, on July 24, 2009, the Fund issued 25,562,500 subscription receipts, each representing the right to receive one trust unit of the Fund (“Unit”), for gross proceeds of approximately $380 million. The proceeds of the subscription receipt offering have been held in escrow pending today’s closing of the Transaction. Upon release, the net proceeds were applied to satisfy a portion of the purchase price payable by the Fund on closing of the Transaction. Effective at 5:00 pm (Toronto time) today, the subscription receipts will be automatically exchanged for Units and each holder of subscription receipts shall receive a cash payment per subscription receipt equal to the distribution of 20.834 cents per Unit declared for the months of July and August 2009. Thereafter, former holders of subscription receipts will be entitled as Unitholders to receive distributions as declared by the Fund. The Units will be issued to former holders of subscription receipts through the facilities of CDS Clearing and Depository Services Inc. (“CDS”) and CDS Book-Entry Only System customer confirmations will be entered on September 2, 2009, the second business day following the Transaction closing date. Trading in the subscription receipts on the Toronto Stock Exchange (the “TSX”) will cease immediately and the subscription receipts will be delisted from the TSX as soon as possible.

As partial consideration for the Transaction, the Fund issued 25,562,500 Units to BRPI. Following closing of the Transaction and the exchange of the subscription receipts into Units as described above, the Fund will have 104,718,976 Units issued and outstanding and BRPI will continue to hold its approximate 50.01% ownership interest in the Fund, on a fully-exchanged basis.

Concurrent with the closing of the Transaction, the Fund changed its name from “Great Lakes Hydro Income Fund” to “Brookfield Renewable Power Fund”. The Units will commence trading under the Fund’s new name at the opening of markets on September 2, 2009 on the TSX, under the new ticker symbol “BRC.UN”.

 

About Great Lakes Hydro Income Fund

Brookfield Renewable Power Fund (www.brpfund.com) is a premier Canadian income fund and one of the largest power income funds in North America with more than 1,600 megawatts of power generating capacity and average annual production exceeding 6,350 gigawatt hours.

The Fund produces electricity exclusively from environmentally friendly and renewable resources. The Fund indirectly owns or holds interests in 42 high quality hydroelectric generating stations and one wind farm in four distinct geographic regions across North America: Quebec, Ontario, British Columbia and New England.

Brookfield Renewable Power Inc., which comprises all of the power operations of Brookfield Asset Management, owns 50.01% of the Fund’s outstanding units on a fully exchanged basis.

The Units are currently listed for trading on the TSX under the symbol GLH.UN. Effective at the opening of markets on September 2, 2009, the Units will trade on the TSX under the symbol BRC.UN

 

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For more information, please visit www.brpfund.com or contact:

Zev Korman
Director, Investor Relations and Communications
Brookfield Renewable Power Fund
Tel: (416) 359-1955
zkorman@brookfield.com