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Description of Organization, Business Operations and Basis of Presentation
5 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2019
Accounting Policies [Abstract]  
Description of Organization, Business Operations and Basis of Presentation

Note 1 — Description of Organization, Business Operations and Basis of Presentation

 

Switchback Energy Acquisition Corporation (the "Company") was incorporated in Delaware on May 10, 2019. The Company was formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses (the "Business Combination"). Although the Company is not limited to a particular industry or sector for purposes of consummating a Business Combination, the Company intends to focus its search for a target business in the energy industry in North America. The Company is an emerging growth company and, as such, the Company is subject to all of the risks associated with emerging growth companies.

 

As of September 30, 2019, the Company had not commenced any operations. All activity for the period from May 10, 2019 (inception) through September 30, 2019 relates to the Company's formation and the initial public offering (the "Initial Public Offering"), and, since the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the search for a prospective initial Business Combination.

 

The Company's sponsor is NGP Switchback, LLC, a Delaware limited liability company (the "Sponsor"). The registration statement for the Initial Public Offering was declared effective on July 25, 2019. On July 30, 2019, the Company consummated the Initial Public Offering of 30,000,000 units (the "Units" and, with respect to the Class A common stock included in the Units, the "Public Shares") at $10.00 per Unit, generating gross proceeds of $300.0 million. The underwriters were granted a 45-day option from the date of the final prospectus relating to the Initial Public Offering to purchase up to 4,500,000 additional Units to cover over-allotments, if any, at $10.00 per Unit, less underwriting discounts and commissions. On September 4, 2019, the underwriters partially exercised the over-allotment option and, on September 6, 2019, the underwriters purchased an additional 1,411,763 units (the "Over-allotment Units"), generating gross proceeds of approximately $14.1 million, and the remaining over-allotment option subsequently expired. The Company incurred offering costs of approximately of approximately $17.7 million, inclusive of $10.9 million in deferred underwriting commissions (Note 5). 

 

Simultaneously with the closing of the Initial Public Offering, the Company consummated the sale (the "Private Placement") of 5,333,333 warrants (each, a "Private Placement Warrant" and collectively, the "Private Placement Warrants") at a price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant in a private placement to the Sponsor, generating gross proceeds of approximately $8.0 million (Note 4). Simultaneously with the closing of the sale of the Over-allotment Units, the Sponsor purchased an additional 188,235 Private Placement Warrants at a price of $1.50 per Private Placement Warrant, generating gross proceeds of approximately $282,000.

 

Approximately $314.1 million ($10.00 per Unit) of the net proceeds of the Initial Public Offering (including the Over-allotment Units) and certain of the proceeds of the Private Placement was placed in a trust account ("Trust Account") located in the United States with Continental Stock Transfer & Trust Company acting as trustee, and invested only in U.S. "government securities," within the meaning set forth in Section 2(a)(16) of the Investment Company Act of 1940, as amended (the "Investment Company Act"), with a maturity of 185 days or less, or in money market funds meeting the conditions of paragraphs (d)(1), (d)(2), (d)(3) and (d)(4) of Rule 2a-7 under the Investment Company Act, which invest only in direct U.S. government treasury obligations, as determined by the Company, until the earlier of: (i) the completion of a Business Combination and (ii) the distribution of the Trust Account as described below.

 

The Company's management has broad discretion with respect to the specific application of the net proceeds of the Initial Public Offering and the sale of Private Placement Warrants, although substantially all of the net proceeds are intended to be applied generally toward consummating a Business Combination. There is no assurance that the Company will be able to complete a Business Combination successfully. The Company must complete one or more initial Business Combinations having an aggregate fair market value of at least 80% of the net assets held in the Trust Account (net of amounts disbursed to management for working capital purposes and excluding the amount of any deferred underwriting discount held in trust) at the time of the agreement to enter into the initial Business Combination. However, the Company will only complete a Business Combination if the post-transaction company owns or acquires 50% or more of the outstanding voting securities of the target or otherwise acquires a controlling interest in the target sufficient for it not to be required to register as an investment company under the Investment Company Act.

 

The Company will provide holders of the Company's outstanding Public Shares (the "Public Stockholders") with the opportunity to redeem all or a portion of their Public Shares (as defined below) upon the completion of a Business Combination either (i) in connection with a stockholder meeting called to approve the Business Combination or (ii) by means of a tender offer. The decision as to whether the Company will seek stockholder approval of a Business Combination or conduct a tender offer will be made by the Company, solely in its discretion. The Public Stockholders will be entitled to redeem their Public Shares for a pro rata portion of the amount then held in the Trust Account (initially anticipated to be $10.00 per Public Share). The per-share amount to be distributed to Public Stockholders who redeem their Public Shares will not be reduced by the deferred underwriting commissions the Company will pay to the underwriters (as discussed in Note 5). These Public Shares were recorded at a redemption value and classified as temporary equity upon the completion of the Initial Public Offering. In such case, the Company will only proceed with a Business Combination if, among other things, the Company has net tangible assets of at least $5,000,001 upon consummation of such Business Combination and a majority of the shares voted are voted in favor of the Business Combination. If a stockholder vote is not required by law and the Company does not decide to hold a stockholder vote for business or other legal reasons, the Company will, pursuant to its Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (the "Certificate of Incorporation"), conduct the redemptions pursuant to the tender offer rules of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") and file tender offer documents with the SEC prior to completing a Business Combination. If, however, stockholder approval of the transaction is required by law, or the Company decides to obtain stockholder approval for business or legal reasons, the Company will offer to redeem shares in conjunction with a proxy solicitation pursuant to the proxy rules and not pursuant to the tender offer rules. Additionally, each public stockholder may elect to redeem its Public Shares irrespective of whether they vote for or against the proposed transaction. If the Company seeks stockholder approval in connection with a Business Combination, the Initial Stockholders (as defined below) have agreed to vote their Founder Shares (as defined below in Note 4) and any Public Shares purchased during or after the Initial Public Offering in favor of a Business Combination. In addition, the Initial Stockholders have agreed to waive their redemption rights with respect to their Founder Shares and Public Shares in connection with the completion of a Business Combination.

 

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the Certificate of Incorporation provides that a public stockholder, together with any affiliate of such stockholder or any other person with whom such stockholder is acting in concert or as a "group" (as defined under Section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act")), will be restricted from redeeming its shares with respect to more than an aggregate of 20% of the Public Shares.

 

The Sponsor and the Company's officers and directors (the "Initial Stockholders") have agreed not to propose an amendment to the Certificate of Incorporation that would affect the substance or timing of the Company's obligation to redeem 100% of the Public Shares if the Company does not complete a Business Combination within the time frame described below, unless the Company provides the Public Stockholders with the opportunity to redeem their Public Shares in conjunction with any such amendment.

 

If the Company is unable to complete a Business Combination within 24 months from the closing of the Initial Public Offering, or July 30, 2021 (the "Combination Period"), the Company will (i) cease all operations except for the purpose of winding up, (ii) as promptly as reasonably possible but not more than ten business days thereafter, redeem the Public Shares, at a per-share price, payable in cash, equal to the aggregate amount then on deposit in the Trust Account, including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its franchise and income taxes (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses), divided by the number of then-outstanding Public Shares, which redemption will completely extinguish Public Stockholders' rights as stockholders (including the right to receive further liquidating distributions, if any), subject to applicable law, and (iii) as promptly as reasonably possible following such redemption, subject to the approval of the Company's remaining stockholders and its board of directors, dissolve and liquidate, subject in each case to the Company's obligations under Delaware law to provide for claims of creditors and the requirements of other applicable law.

 

The Initial Stockholders have agreed to waive their liquidation rights with respect to the Founder Shares if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period. However, the Initial Stockholders will be entitled to liquidating distributions from the Trust Account with respect to any Public Shares that they hold if the Company fails to complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period. The underwriters have agreed to waive their rights to the deferred underwriting commission (see Note 5) held in the Trust Account in the event the Company does not complete a Business Combination within the Combination Period and, in such event, such amounts will be included with the other funds held in the Trust Account that will be available to fund the redemption of the Public Shares. In the event of such distribution, it is possible that the per share value of the residual assets remaining available for distribution (including Trust Account assets) will be only $10.00. In order to protect the amounts held in the Trust Account, the Sponsor has agreed to be liable to the Company if and to the extent any claims by a third party (except for the Company's independent registered public accounting firm) for services rendered or products sold to the Company, or a prospective target business with which the Company has entered into a letter of intent, confidentiality or other similar agreement or business combination agreement (a "Target"), reduce the amount of funds in the Trust Account to below the lesser of (i) $10.00 per Public Share and (ii) the actual amount per Public Share held in the Trust Account due to reductions in the value of the trust assets as of the date of the liquidation of the Trust Account, in each case including interest earned on the funds held in the Trust Account and not previously released to the Company to pay its franchise and income taxes, less franchise and income taxes payable. This liability will not apply with respect to any claims by a third party or Target that executed an agreement waiving claims against and all rights to seek access to the Trust Account whether or not such agreement is enforceable or to any claims under the Company's indemnity of the underwriters of the Initial Public Offering against certain liabilities, including liabilities under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act"). The Company will seek to reduce the possibility that the Sponsor will have to indemnify the Trust Account due to claims of creditors by endeavoring to have all vendors, service providers, prospective target businesses or other entities with which the Company does business, execute agreements with the Company waiving any right, title, interest or claim of any kind in or to monies held in the Trust Account.

 

Basis of Presentation

 

The accompanying unaudited condensed financial statements are presented in U.S. dollars in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP") for financial information and pursuant to the rules and regulations of the SEC. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP. In the opinion of management, the unaudited condensed financial statements reflect all adjustments, which include only normal recurring adjustments necessary for the fair statement of the balances and results for the periods presented. Operating results for the period from May 10, 2019 (inception) through September 30, 2019 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected through December 31, 2019.

 

The accompanying unaudited condensed financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited financial statements and notes thereto included in the final prospectus filed by the Company with the SEC on July 29, 2019 related to the Initial Public Offering and the audited balance sheet included in the Form 8-K filed by the Company with the SEC on August 5, 2019.

 

Emerging Growth Company

 

The Company is an "emerging growth company," as defined in Section 2(a) of the Securities Act, as modified by the Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act of 2012 (the "JOBS Act"), and it may take advantage of certain exemptions from various reporting requirements that are applicable to other public companies that are not emerging growth companies including, but not limited to, not being required to comply with the independent registered public accounting firm attestation requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, reduced disclosure obligations regarding executive compensation in its periodic reports and proxy statements, and exemptions from the requirements of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation and stockholder approval of any golden parachute payments not previously approved.

 

Further, section 102(b)(1) of the JOBS Act exempts emerging growth companies from being required to comply with new or revised financial accounting standards until private companies (that is, those that have not had a Securities Act registration statement declared effective or do not have a class of securities registered under the Exchange Act) are required to comply with the new or revised financial accounting standards. The JOBS Act provides that an emerging growth company can elect to opt out of the extended transition period and comply with the requirements that apply to non-emerging growth companies but any such an election to opt out is irrevocable. The Company has elected not to opt out of such extended transition period, which means that when a standard is issued or revised and it has different application dates for public or private companies, the Company, as an emerging growth company, can adopt the new or revised standard at the time private companies adopt the new or revised standard.

 

This may make comparison of the Company's financial statements with another public company that is neither an emerging growth company nor an emerging growth company that has opted out of using the extended transition period difficult or impossible because of the potential differences in accounting standards used.

 

Liquidity

 

As of September 30, 2019, the Company had approximately $820,000 in its operating bank account, approximately $1.0 million of gain on marketable securities, dividends and interest held in Trust Account available to fund a Business Combination (less up to $100,000 of interest to pay dissolution expenses and net of taxes payable), and a working capital of $644,000 (including approximately $272,000 in tax obligations, which will be paid using investment income held in Trust Account). In addition, in order to finance transaction costs in connection with a Business Combination, the Sponsor or an affiliate of the Sponsor, or certain of the Company's officers and directors may, but are not obligated to, loan the Company funds as may be required ("Working Capital Loans") (see Note 4). As of September 30, 2019, there were no amounts outstanding under any Working Capital Loan.

 

Through September 30, 2019, the Company's liquidity needs have been satisfied through receipt of a $25,000 capital contribution from the Sponsor in exchange for the issuance of the Founder Shares (Note 4) to the Sponsor, approximately $251,000 in loans from the Sponsor (which were fully repaid on August 12, 2019), and the net proceeds from the consummation of the Private Placement not held in the Trust Account.

 

Based on the foregoing, management believes that the Company will have sufficient working capital and borrowing capacity to meet its needs through the earlier of the consummation of a Business Combination or one year from this filing. Over this time period, the Company will be using these funds for paying existing accounts payable, identifying and evaluating prospective initial Business Combination candidates, performing due diligence on prospective target businesses, paying for travel expenditures, selecting the target business to merge with or acquire, and structuring, negotiating and consummating the Business Combination.