SSEN Transmission has secured a £1billion loan to support four major electricity grid upgrade projects across the north of Scotland.
The business said the financing will help deliver critical infrastructure including the Eastern Green Link 2 (EGL2) subsea project at Peterhead.
The high-voltage subsea link between the Buchan coast and Yorkshire is the largest ever single investment in the UK transmission system and is expected to play a critical role in delivering UK and Scottish clean power and energy security targets, while supporting thousands of jobs across the country.
The deal has been syndicated to a group of relationship banks led by Bank of America, alongside BBVA, HSBC, JP Morgan, Lloyds, MUFG, NatWest and Santander, and has been ringfenced as a Green Loan.
12-year bank facility is backed by an £800million financial guarantee from the UK Government’s National Wealth Fund. Its facility provides longer-dated lending aligned to the lifespan of grid assets and is intended to ensure rapid progress of the upgrades, which have been independently assessed as required by the National Energy System Operator and energy regulator Ofgem.
Barry O’Regan, SSE’s chief financial officer, said: “This new Bank Facility supported by the National Wealth Fund financial guarantee provides an excellent source of funding diversification, and with a three-year availability window helping to manage liquidity for SSEN Transmission.
“It demonstrates the importance of grid upgrades both in achieving the country's clean power and energy security goals, and in unlocking economic growth throughout the nations and regions of Britain.”
SSEN Transmission, headquartered in Perth with offices in Aberdeen, Inverness and Glasgow, is responsible for the electricity transmission network in the north of Scotland and plays a central role in connecting renewable generation to homes and businesses as part of the transition to a net zero economy.