National Wealth Fund (NWF) has pledged £600 million to Iberdrola, through its subsidiary ScottishPower, to strengthen the British power grid and enable greater integration of renewable energy. The investment is a part of a larger £1.35 billion financing package led by Bank of America, alongside lenders including BankInter, BNP Paribas, Caixabank, Lloyds Bank, NatWest, and Banco Sabadell.
NWF’s commitment will accelerate capital deployment for seven of ScottishPower’s priority transmission upgrade projects. Among the key initiatives backed by the funding are the Eastern Green Link (EGL) 1 and 4 projects. These high-capacity interconnectors will enhance the transfer of clean electricity from Scotland to energy demand centres in the North-East of England and Norfolk, helping to unlock significant renewable energy potential.
Additionally, the financing will support grid enhancements at five locations in Scotland, including the construction of new substations, overhead line reconfigurations, and transmission cable upgrades aimed at boosting capacity and grid resilience.
The investment comes amid growing recognition of the scale of grid modernisation needed to meet the UK Government’s Clean Power 2030 targets. The National Energy System Operator (NESO) has estimated that up to £60 billion in grid investment will be required by 2030 to realise the UK’s ambition for a fully clean power system.
