Banks extend Bruntwood SciTech loan

Bruntwood and Legal & General’s joint venture has secured a three-year, £95m facility to fund its growth and investment strategy, from NatWest, Santander, Lloyds Bank and HSBC.

The new sustainability-linked loan extends Bruntwood SciTech’s existing £185m loan, which it agreed with the club in 2019, to £280m.

Bruntwood SciTech, a 50:50 joint venture between Bruntwood and Legal & General to focus on development in science and technology assets, said it will use the funding to invest in the ongoing development of Alderley Park; Manchester Science Park; Platform in Leeds; and the commercial buildings at Circle Square in central Manchester.

The funding will also be used to support new acquisitions.

Bruntwood SciTech was advised by Addleshaw Goddard and the lenders were advised by Shoosmiths, with CBRE providing valuations.

The developer, which last year completed Citylabs 2.0 in Manchester, which is fully let to diagnostics company Qiagen, will continue to receive a discount on its cost of funding by agreeing to fulfil bespoke sustainability-linked covenants across a number of initiatives including waste and recycling, green energy procurement and a pledge to reduce the energy intensity of its portfolio by more than 10% over the lifetime of the loan.

Kate Lawlor, chief executive of Bruntwood SciTech, said: “Our innovation clusters are powering the future of the UK knowledge economy, providing the environments and ecosystems that companies in the science and tech sector need to form, scale and grow.

“We’re continuing to see significant demand for our specialist workspaces and labs and this new funding agreement gives us the platform to accelerate our growth responsibly and sustainably and perfectly aligns with our pledge to be net zero carbon by 2030.”

Amy Davies, relationship director for real estate finance at HSBC UK, said: “Developing and advancing sustainable technologies is key to all of our futures, which is why we’re pleased to play our part in supporting businesses that are tackling these issues head on.”

Your Comments

Read our comments policy

Related Articles

Sign up to receive the Place Daily Briefing

Join more than 13,000 property professionals and receive your free daily round-up of built environment news direct to your inbox

Subscribe

Join more than 13,000 property professionals and sign up to receive your free daily round-up of built environment news direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you are agreeing to our Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy.

"*" indicates required fields

Your Job Field*
Other regional Publications - select below