First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund : Annual Report for the year ended October 31, 2021

FIRST TRUST

NEW OPPORTUNITIES MLP & ENERGY FUND (FPL)

ANNUAL REPORT

FOR THE YEAR ENDED

OCTOBER 31, 2021

Table of Contents
First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund (FPL)
Annual Report
October 31, 2021
Shareholder Letter. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	1
At a Glance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	2
Portfolio Commentary . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	3
Portfolio of Investments . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	6
Statement of Assets and Liabilities. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	8
Statement of Operations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	9
Statements of Changes in Net Assets. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	10
Statement of Cash Flows . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	11
Financial Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	12
Notes to Financial Statements. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	13
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	21
Additional Information . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	22
Investment Objective, Policies, Risks and Effects of Leverage . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	26
Board of Trustees and Officers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	32
Privacy Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .	34

Caution Regarding Forward-Looking Statements

This report contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding the goals, beliefs, plans or current expectations of First Trust Advisors L.P. ("First Trust" or the "Advisor") and/or Energy Income Partners, LLC ("EIP" or the "Sub-Advisor") and their respective representatives, taking into account the information currently available to them. Forward-looking statements include all statements that do not relate solely to current or historical fact. For example, forward-looking statements include the use of words such as "anticipate," "estimate," "intend," "expect," "believe," "plan," "may," "should," "would" or other words that convey uncertainty of future events or outcomes.

Forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, performance or achievements of First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund (the "Fund") to be materially different from any future results, performance or achievements expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. When evaluating the information included in this report, you are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which reflect the judgment of the Advisor and/or Sub-Advisor and their respective representatives only as of the date hereof. We undertake no obligation to publicly revise or update these forward-looking statements to reflect events and circumstances that arise after the date hereof.

Performance and Risk Disclosure

There is no assurance that the Fund will achieve its investment objective. The Fund is subject to market risk, which is the possibility that the market values of securities owned by the Fund will decline and that the value of the Fund's shares may therefore be less than what you paid for them. Accordingly, you can lose money by investing in the Fund. See "Principal Risks" in the Investment Objective, Policies, Risks and Effects of Leverage section of this report for a discussion of certain other risks of investing in the Fund.

Performance data quoted represents past performance, which is no guarantee of future results, and current performance may be lower or higher than the figures shown. For the most recent month-end performance figures, please visit www.ftportfolios.comor speak with your financial advisor. Investment returns, net asset value and common share price will fluctuate and Fund shares, when sold, may be worth more or less than their original cost.

The Advisor may also periodically provide additional information on Fund performance on the Fund's web page at www.ftportfolios.com.

How to Read This Report

This report contains information that may help you evaluate your investment in the Fund. It includes details about the Fund and presents data and analysis that provide insight into the Fund's performance and investment approach.

By reading the portfolio commentary by the portfolio management team of the Fund, you may obtain an understanding of how the market environment affected the Fund's performance. The statistical information that follows may help you understand the Fund's performance compared to that of relevant market benchmarks.

It is important to keep in mind that the opinions expressed by personnel of First Trust and EIP are just that: informed opinions. They should not be considered to be promises or advice. The opinions, like the statistics, cover the period through the date on the cover of this report. The material risks of investing in the Fund are spelled out in the prospectus, the statement of additional information, this report and other Fund regulatory filings.

Shareholder Letter

First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund (FPL)

Annual Letter from the Chairman and CEO

October 31, 2021

Dear Shareholders,

First Trust is pleased to provide you with the annual report for the First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund (the "Fund"), which contains detailed information about the Fund for the twelve months ended October 31, 2021.

Inflation has arrived, and its entrance was grand, to say the least. The Consumer Price Index came in at 6.2% year-over-year in October 2021, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. The last time it topped the 6.0% mark was in December 1990 (6.1%), over 30 years ago. As is often the case with major shifts in the economy and markets, there is debate over what is truly behind them.

For many months, as inflation was trending higher, Federal Reserve (the "Fed") Chairman Jerome Powell held the view that the rising inflationary pressures largely stemmed from global supply chain bottlenecks induced by the coronavirus ("COVID-19") pandemic. Perhaps the best example of this is the unprecedented backlog of container ships that have dropped anchor outside the California ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. Together, these ports service 40% of all the container ships bound for the U.S. In normal times, no ships are anchored waiting to unload their goods. Shortages of trucks and drivers have also contributed to the slowdown at the ports.

The takeaway is that goods are not being delivered to warehouses and store shelves in a timely fashion and that is helping to drive prices higher for consumers. Simply put, inflation is the byproduct of too much money chasing too few goods. We'll return to this axiom shortly. Chairman Powell originally believed the bottlenecks would be remedied relatively quickly as the global economy reopened and people went back to work. That, in turn, would allow inflationary pressures to dissipate, which has not happened. Around the end of October, Chairman Powell finally acknowledged that inflation will likely remain elevated through mid-2022. This realization is what motivated the Fed to announce that it would begin to taper its monthly bond buying program (quantitative easing) starting in November 2021. It has been purchasing roughly $80 billion of Treasuries and $40 billion of mortgage-backed securities in the open market every month since June 2020. The Fed will shave $15 billion off that combined total every month until the buying has ceased, which should be around mid-2022. If all goes to plan, the next stage in the evolution of the Fed's monetary policy would involve initiating interest rate hikes.

While the supply chain bottlenecks have clearly played a role in the spike in inflation by limiting the amount of goods available to consume, the biggest contributing factor is likely the surge in the U.S. money supply, according to Brian Wesbury, Chief Economist at First Trust. M2 is a measure of the money supply that includes cash, checking deposits and liquid assets easily convertible to cash. The M2 measure of money has exploded by 36% since February 2020, well above the 6% pre-COVID-19 annualized norm. The trillions of dollars of stimulus distributed by the U.S. government to help backstop the economy during the pandemic has contributed to higher inflation. On Wednesday, November 10, 2021, President Joe Biden admitted that his $1.9 trillion COVID-19 stimulus package has done just that. Remember, too much money chasing too few goods leads to inflation. Keep in mind, President Biden has recently successfully navigated a $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure bill through Congress and has another roughly $1.75 trillion Build Back Better Act (social spending) piece of legislation pending. That means there is at least another $1.2 trillion dollars flowing into the economy over the next few years, and maybe more.

Data from FactSet indicates that the number of S&P 500® Index companies mentioning inflation on their 2021 third quarter earnings call hit a 10-year high, according to Business Insider. To date, 285 of the 461 companies that have reported their results have cited concerns over rising inflation. The Materials, Consumer Staples and Energy sectors had the highest percentage of companies mentioned on these earnings calls at 90%, 88% and 86%, respectively. Suffice it to say, investors should add inflation to the list of criteria to assist them in positioning their portfolios moving forward.

Thank you for giving First Trust the opportunity to play a role in your financial future. We value our relationship with you and will report on the Fund again in six months.

Sincerely,

James A. Bowen

Chairman of the Board of Trustees

Chief Executive Officer of First Trust Advisors L.P.

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First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund (FPL)

"AT A GLANCE"

As of October 31, 2021 (Unaudited)

Fund Statistics

Symbol on New York Stock Exchange	FPL
Common Share Price	$5.80
Common Share Net Asset Value ("NAV")	$6.44
Premium (Discount) to NAV	(9.94)%
Net Assets Applicable to Common Shares	$159,157,459
Current Distribution per Common Share(1)	$0.0375
Current Annualized Distribution per Common Share	$0.4500
Current Distribution Rate on Common Share Price(2)	7.76%
Current Distribution Rate on NAV(2)	6.99%

Common Share Price & NAV (weekly closing price)

						Common Share Price		NAV
$7.00
$6.00
$5.00
$4.00
$3.00
0/20	20		0		1	1	3/21	1	1	6/21	7/21	1	/21		1
	/2	2	/2	4/2	/2	/2		/2
11/	2	1/		2	5	8	9	0
1	1												1

Performance

						Average Annual
						Total Returns
					1 Year Ended	5 Years Ended	Inception (3/26/14)
				10/31/21	10/31/21	to 10/31/21
Fund Performance(3)
NAV				48.22%	-3.51%	-4.63%
Market Value				72.51%	-5.35%	-6.50%
Index Performance
S&P 500® Index				42.91%	18.94%	14.95%
Alerian MLP Total Return Index				85.70%	-0.56%	-3.55%
Wells Fargo Midstream MLP Total Return Index(4)		N/A	N/A		N/A
	% of Total				% of Total
Industry Classification	Investments		Top Ten Holdings		Investments
Electric Power & Transmission	30.9%		Magellan Midstream Partners, L.P.	8.1%
Natural Gas Transmission	26.5
		Enterprise Products Partners, L.P.	7.4
Petroleum Product Transmission	25.8
		TC Energy Corp.		6.7
Crude Oil Transmission	8.1
		Cheniere Energy Partners, L.P.		4.5
Propane	2.4
		Williams (The) Cos., Inc.		4.5
Marine	1.5
		Plains All American Pipeline, L.P.	4.1
Natural Gas Gathering & Processing	1.3
		Energy Transfer, L.P.		3.9
Other	3.5
		Sempra Energy		3.7
Total	100.0%		Public Service Enterprise Group, Inc.	3.4
					Southern (The) Co.		2.9
					Total		49.2%
					Fund Allocation		% of Net Assets
					Common Stocks		74.4%
					Master Limited Partnerships		50.1
					Outstanding Loan		(25.4)
					Net Other Assets and Liabilities	0.9
					Total		100.0%

1. Most recent distribution paid or declared through October 31, 2021. Subject to change in the future.
2. Distribution rates are calculated by annualizing the most recent distribution paid or declared through the report date and then dividing by Common Share Price or NAV, as applicable, as of October 31, 2021. Subject to change in the future.
3. Total return is based on the combination of reinvested dividend, capital gain, and return of capital distributions, if any, at prices obtained by the Dividend Reinvestment Plan and changes in NAV per share for NAV returns and changes in Common Share Price for market value returns. Total returns do not reflect sales load and are not annualized for periods of less than one year. Past performance is not indicative of future results.
4. On February 26, 2021, Wells Fargo ceased providing index return information for the Wells Fargo Midstream MLP Total Return Index.

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Portfolio Commentary

First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund (FPL)

Annual Report

October 31, 2021 (Unaudited)

Advisor

First Trust Advisors L.P. ("First Trust" or the "Advisor") serves as the investment advisor to the First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund (the "Fund"). First Trust is responsible for the ongoing monitoring of the Fund's investment portfolio, managing the Fund's business affairs and providing certain administrative services necessary for the management of the Fund.

Sub-Advisor

Energy Income Partners, LLC

Energy Income Partners, LLC ("EIP"), located in Westport, CT, was founded in 2003 to provide professional asset management services in publicly traded energy-related infrastructure companies with above average dividend payout ratios operating pipelines and related storage and handling facilities, electric power transmission and distribution as well as long contracted or regulated power generation from renewables and other sources. The corporate structure of the portfolio companies include C-corporations, partnerships and energy infrastructure real estate investment trusts. EIP mainly focuses on investments in assets that receive steady fee-based or regulated income from their corporate and individual customers. EIP manages or supervises approximately $4.4 billion of assets as of October 31, 2021. EIP advises two privately offered partnerships for U.S. high net worth individuals and an open-end mutual fund. EIP also manages separately managed accounts and provides its model portfolio to unified managed accounts. Finally, EIP serves as a sub-advisor to three closed-end management investment companies in addition to the Fund, two actively managed exchange-traded funds, a sleeve of an actively managed exchange-traded fund and a sleeve of a series of a variable insurance trust. EIP is a registered investment advisor with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Portfolio Management Team

James J. Murchie - Co-Portfolio Manager, Founder and CEO of Energy Income Partners, LLC

Eva Pao - Co-Portfolio Manager, Principal of Energy Income Partners, LLC

John Tysseland - Co-Portfolio Manager, Principal of Energy Income Partners, LLC

Commentary

First Trust New Opportunities MLP & Energy Fund

The Fund's investment objective is to seek a high level of total return with an emphasis on current distributions paid to common shareholders. The Fund seeks to provide its common shareholders with a vehicle to invest in a portfolio of cash-generating securities, with a focus on investing in publicly traded master limited partnerships ("MLPs"), MLP-related entities and other companies in the energy sector and energy utility industries that are weighted towards non-cyclical,fee-for-service revenues. There can be no assurance that the Fund's investment objective will be achieved. The Fund may not be appropriate for all investors.

Market Recap

As measured by the Alerian MLP Total Return Index ("AMZX" or "MLP Benchmark"), the total return for the MLP Benchmark1 for the 12-month period ended October 31, 2021 was 85.70%. For AMZX, this return reflects a positive 15.72% from distribution payments, while the remaining returns are due to share price appreciation. These figures are according to data collected from several sources, including the MLP Benchmark and Bloomberg. While in the short term, market share price appreciation can be volatile, we believe that over the long term, such share price appreciation will approximate growth in per share earnings and quarterly cash distributions paid by the companies in the portfolio.

1 On February 26, 2021, Wells Fargo ceased providing index return information for the Wells Fargo Midstream MLP Total Return Index.

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