Bruntwood SciTech secures £100m green loan

The joint venture between Bruntwood and Legal & General will use half the cash to fund the construction of No3 Circle Square in Manchester.

No3 Circle Square will sit on the corner of Brancaster Road and Princess Street within Manchester’s Oxford Road Corridor. GMI Construction is the main contractor for the 15-storey building, which is set to offer 267,000 sq ft of workspace.

No3 Circle Square will take £50m from the £100m green loan, with the remainder going towards supporting Bruntwood SciTech’s innovation and growth outside of Manchester.

The £100m green loan is part of Bruntwood SciTech’s financial facilities from HSBC UK, Lloyds Bank, Nat West, and Santander UK. It comes with sustainability strings attached, which are all in line with Bruntwood SciTech’s mission for its estate to be net zero in new buildings by 2030 and in its entire portfolio by 2050.

Measured targets will include improved EPC ratings, a year-on-year reduction in carbon intensity, an increase in renewable energy procurement, and a reduction in embodied carbon in new-builds. Lloyds Bank was the sustainability coordinator behind the green loan.

This fits well with Bruntwood SciTech’s proposals for No3 Circle Square, which is aiming to achieve a BREEAM rating of Excellent, a NABERS 5-star rating, and an EPC rating of A. The building’s green features include all-electric heating and cooling, smart metering, air source heat pumps, solar panels, and a smart building management system.

No3 Circle Square is also meant to have a landscape garden, cycle facilities, and shower rooms.

The £100m green loan now means Bruntwood SciTech has a £380m financial package for its continued growth and to help improve its portfolio.

Kate Lawlor, chief executive at Bruntwood SciTech, said: “We are committed to a net zero future within the world-class infrastructure we build and provide for science and technology businesses and we continue to set ourselves ambitious targets to meet this goal.

“This new funding agreement enables us to accelerate our growth both sustainably and at pace, so that we can provide the specialist facilities businesses in the innovation sector need in line with demand and with minimal environmental impact.

“We look forward to commencing construction on No.3 Circle Square soon as well as our future development pipeline across the UK.”

Lloyds Bank was the sustainability coordinator for the £100m green loan.

Richard Butterfield, relationship director for real estate and housing at Lloyds, said:  “Bruntwood SciTech remains one of the UK’s true success stories – a business with sustainability and the industries of tomorrow running through its core.”

He added later: “We are looking forward to continuing to support businesses like Bruntwood SciTech that are focused on greening the built environment.”

Regarding the financial deal, Shoosmiths acted on behalf of the banks. Addleshaw Goddard represented Bruntwood SciTech on the deal. CBRE provided valuations.