Slaughter and May advised Derwent London plc (“Derwent”) on its issuance of £350 million 1.875% 10-year green bonds (“Bonds”) (“Issuance”). The Bond will be listed on the Official List of the UK Listing Authority and admitted to trading on the Main Market and the Sustainable Bond Market of the London Stock Exchange.
The Issuance is Derwent’s debut bond issue and will diversify its sources of funding, introducing long-term financing into Derwent’s capital structure. The proceeds of the Bonds will initially be used to repay amounts drawn under the Group’s revolving credit facilities, thereby refinancing eligible green projects (“EGPs”) in line with its Green Finance Framework. Subsequently, the net proceeds will be deployed into additional qualifying expenditures on EGPs, supporting Derwent’s pathway to become net zero by 2030.
The Bonds are expected to be rated ‘A’ by Fitch Ratings Ltd.
Barclays, HSBC, NatWest Markets and Wells Fargo Securities acted as Joint Active Bookrunners, with Barclays and HSBC as Joint Green Structuring Agents.