Centrus formulated a treasury strategy for CCHA’s board to identify key funding requirements and led a competitive fundraising process, utilising market-leading insights to obtain cost-effective and covenant-supportive options, before recommending an option that aligned with CCHA’s goals.
A competitive fundraising process was structured by Centrus to enable the delivery of optimal results on key commercial terms and negotiated successfully with the chosen lenders to achieve a meaningful interest margin discount on already competitive terms.
Centrus complete project management helped deliver the project within just 14 weeks, allowing CCHA’s to achieve their targeted governance process.
How did this transaction benefit Castles & Coasts?
£30 million in term loans and a £40 million RCF will support medium-term investment in building new homes and improving current homes. Very competitive pricing achieved, resulting in £1.8 million in interest savings compared to plan assumptions and £44,000 per year savings compared to existing RCFs.
Financial, security, and key corporate covenants optimised
Improved covenant position – enhancement of 20% for ICR and 18% for gearing
Appropriate structuring to manage treasury risk effectively
Significantly reduced refinancing risk by increasing bank WAL from 2 years to 6 years
Included a 1-year availability period on term debt, providing flexibility on spend timing while minimising the cost of carry
Enabled CCHA to execute additional embedded hedging through its term loan agreement to avoid the risk of margin calls and the impact of mark-to-market on its financial statement
“We were delighted to work with Centrus on a £30m term loan and £40m RCF to support our medium-term investment plans. Their expert advice, market insight and flexible approach helped us meet a challenging deadline and achieve excellent value for money. The team’s professionalism and attention to detail ensured an optimal outcome, strengthening our treasury position and supporting our future development plans. They provide an exceptional service – always a pleasure to work with and consistently deliver outstanding results.”
Jamie Wright, Acting Finance Director – Castles & Coasts Housing Association
For more information, please contact Tom Miller, Director, Housing, Education & Care
Centrus has advised Auxesia Homes on securing a £25 million social loan from HSBC UK, supporting the organisation’s continued growth and commitment to delivering high-quality, affordable homes across the UK. The funding will enable Auxesia to refinance existing facilities and invest in the development of around 1,300 new homes by 2030, strengthening its position as a leading for-profit registered provider focused on social impact.
The three-year facility provides a flexible platform for future expansion, helping Auxesia scale its delivery of new-build houses and apartments in partnership with SME and national housebuilders.
“We’re delighted to have advised Auxesia Homes on this latest funding. Having worked with the team since 2021, it’s great to see the business continue to grow from strength to strength, delivering high-quality homes while keeping residents and social impact at the heart of what they do.”
Scott Douglas, Senior Director, Head of Debt Advisory – Centrus
Centrus acted as financial adviser to Auxesia Homes, with Anthony Collins Solicitors providing legal support on the transaction.
For more information, please contact Scott Douglas, Senior Director, Head of Debt Advisory – Centrus and Ella Boomer, Assistant Director, Debt Advisory – Centrus
Foresight Energy Infrastructure Partners (“FEIP”, “the Fund”), a private fund managed by Foresight Group LLP, has secured a €80m NAV facility from RBS International to support the ongoing investment programme of the Fund.
The transaction was led by Centrus representatives Barney Harris, Jack Joel and Lauren McLoughlin, with Ashurst acting as legal adviser to the borrower and Travers Smith representing the lender.
Centrus’ role and added value
Centrus acted as exclusive financial advisor to FEIP, playing a central role in the structuring and execution of the transaction. Their involvement ensured the facility was tailored to FEIP’s requirements and allowed the Fund to realise its objectives. Key areas of support included:
Managing engagement with lenders and coordinating the lender due diligence process
Negotiating and refining the commercial terms of the facility
Structuring the facility to include a scalable accordion feature
Aligning the facility with FEIP’s cash flow profile
Centrus’ expertise enabled FEIP to secure a flexible, efficient capital solution to support the current operations and future development of the Fund.
“We are pleased to have secured this financing package, which will support both the growth of FEIP and the continued success of its portfolio. Our thanks go to Centrus for their expert advice and to RBS International UK for their confidence in backing our strategy.”
Ben Williams, Investment Director – Foresight
“Centrus is delighted to have acted as financial advisor to Foresight to arrange this competitive financing package from RBS International UK, supporting FEIP’s current operations and future developments of the underlying portfolio.”
Centrus acted as exclusive debt adviser to Ancala Partners LLP (Ancala) in arranging the financing for its acquisition of 300 telecom towers across Ireland from Phoenix Tower International (PTI).
The portfolio forms a cornerstone investment for Ancala’s newly launched tower platform, TorLoc Towers, which has assumed the existing customer contracts and will continue to provide critical infrastructure services to mobile network operators and other clients, including emergency services, rural broadband providers and private enterprise networks.
This landmark transaction marks Ancala’s first tower acquisition in Ireland, which aims to become a leading independent tower platform. Ancala intends to grow the platform organically and through complementary acquisitions.
“We are delighted to have supported Ancala on this important acquisition. Telecom towers represent mission-critical digital infrastructure, and this transaction underlines both the resilience of the sector and Ancala’s commitment to investing in assets that deliver long-term value for communities and shareholders alike”
Scott Douglas, Senior Director, Head of Debt Advisory – Centrus
Centrus continues to support real asset investors across Europe and North America with expert debt and capital advisory services for digital and essential infrastructure.
For more information, please contact Scott Douglas, Senior Director, Head of Debt Advisory.
Electric Land is Europe’s largest specialist investor and developer of powered land for renewable and flexible energy generation and storage. Electric Land’s business is focused on aggregating quality freehold, grid-connected land that is leased to independent power producers (‘IPPs’) or utilities for renewable energy generation and storage infrastructure. It does this both through developing assets and leasing them ready-to-build to IPPs and utilities, and through M&A of assets created by third parties.
Centrus acted as a financial advisor to FPC to raise investment in the Company from Stonepeak to fund the current portfolio and support further growth.
Strategic Rationale
The Company’s current portfolio of powered land sites comprises 1.1 GW across 29 owned sites, and it has a robust development pipeline of 9 GW across the UK, Ireland, and Germany.
Working closely with the Electric Land management team, Stonepeak intends to provide continual strategic and financial support to the Company as it grows its platform both organically and through additional acquisitions. To date, the Company’s growth has been funded by FPC, which will continue to support the business, and together with Stonepeak’s resources, unlock the pipeline and a new phase of growth.
Centrus’ Added Value
Designed the capital raise process and timetable.
Collaborating with the client on positioning of the opportunity with multiple capital sources across tangible assets.
Coordination of due diligence advisors and management of sell-side due diligence processes.
Identifying, screening and contacting potential investors and responding to due diligence enquiries. Dedicated support throughout the transaction, including transaction documentation and due diligence to enable smooth execution and an optimal outcome
“We are delighted to have acted as exclusive sell-side advisor for FPC and Electric Land in completing this deal with Stonepeak. We are thankful to the Electric Land team for their trust and collaboration, and wish the partners future success.”
Omer Fazal, Managing Director – Centrus
For more information, please contact Omer Fazal, Managing Director.
Centrus identified the key requirements of the new facility and led a competitive fundraising process, utilising its market-leading insight to obtain cost-effective and covenant-supportive options, before recommending an option that aligned with North Star’s strategy.
Centrus structured the fundraising process to deliver optimal results on key commercial terms. Centrus successfully negotiated with the chosen lender to secure a meaningful interest margin discount on an already economically strong offer.
Centrus also enabled appropriate future interest rate risk management by providing relevant assurance on available hedging products, empowering North Star’s Board to reach a reasoned decision on entering the organisation’s first loan-linked ISDA arrangement.
How did this transaction benefit North Star?
New £20m term loan to deliver medium-term investment plan
Enables North Star to develop new homes and decarbonise/replace components in existing homes.
Provides a 2-year availability period, offeringappropriate flexibility in the timing of expenditure while minimising the cost of carry.
Very competitive pricing achieved, saving £10,000 interest per annum after Centrus negotiated the initially offered margin down, and allowing North Star to demonstrate substantial value for money.
Financial, security and key corporate covenants optimisedNew £20m term loan to deliver medium-term investment plan
Maintained inherent flexibility within North Star’s already very favourable wider portfolio.
Reinforced capacity and financial resilience.
Appropriate structuring to manage treasury risk effectively.
Loan-linked ISDA hedging will enable North Star to manage interest rate risk without being exposed to further security risk.
Avoiding capital repayments at the same time as other loans across the wider portfolio, reducing refinancing risk.
“We are delighted to have worked with Centrus to raise a new £20m bank term facility. Centrusprovided expert advice and support during the analysis, negotiation and completion stages of our engagement. This was pivotal in reaching a great outcomeandafforded the Board the confidencethat treasury arrangements are optimally structured to provide a strong platform to meet our ambitious corporate objectives. They always provide first class service – I really enjoy working with them and they always deliver!”
Andrew Carlton, Executive Director of Finance and Business Support – North Star Housing Group
For more information, please contact Akhil Shah, Assistant Director, Housing, Education & Care.
Zood Infrastructure Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of SDCL Efficiency Income Trust plc (SEIT), has successfully secured £17.6 million in long-term financing from NatWest to accelerate the expansion of its UK-wide electric vehicle (EV) charging network. This funding supports Zood’s infrastructure-as-a-service model, which is built on inflation-linked, availability-based revenues secured through long-term contracts with leading charge point operators.
In addition to the core facility, NatWest has also made available an uncommitted facility of up to £40 million to support Zood’s growing pipeline of projects.
Centrus acted as financial advisor to SEIT on the transaction providing debt and risk advisory services, led by Barney Harris and Christos Deligiannis. Legal advisers were Watson Farley & Williams (Zood) and Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer (NatWest).
“We are very pleased to be partnering with NatWest to support the roll-out of much-needed electric vehicle charging infrastructure across the United Kingdom. The current platform of 34 ultra-fast charging sites represents years of work and is very well positioned to accelerate its growth, in which NatWest will be a key partner“
Ben Griffiths – Fund Manager, SEIT
“We are delighted to support Zood Infrastructure in its mission to expand the UK’s electric vehicle charging network. This financing underscores NatWest’s commitment to sustainable energy solutions and highlights our role in accelerating the transition to a low-carbon economy by investing in vital infrastructure.”
Bruce Riley – Managing Director, Head of Energy Transition, NatWest
“Centrus is delighted to have acted as financial advisor to SEIT to arrange this competitive financing package from NatWest to support Zood’s future growth and rollout of electric vehicle charging infrastructure. Electric vehicles are critical to the UK’s net zero strategy requiring a significant investment in charging infrastructure and providing significant market opportunity for Zood over the coming years.”
Established in 1973, The Peel Group is a leading British real estate and infrastructure investor with a long-track record of delivering large-scale regeneration projects primarily across the North of England.
Assets under management include:
13 million sqft of real assets
3,000 acres of land and water
As one of the major developers in the UK, Peel’s focus on urban regeneration has delivered several transformation projects across the UK including MediaCity and TraffordCity.
Centrus was retained as exclusive financial advisor to Peel Group in connection to the refinance of its two distinct strategic land businesses – Peel Land and Peel Waters.
This refinance will support continued regeneration efforts and deliver enabling infrastructure across core sites.
Centrus’ solution
Comprehensive debt advisory exercise, including strategic review of refinancing options prior to approaching the market.
Development of a detailed financial model aligned with the Group’s business plan.
Competitive market engagement to negotiate optimal terms across a club of banks.
Key benefits as part of the refinancing:
Streamlined operating and reporting requirements, better aligning with Peel’s divisional operating model.
More efficient security structure, removing cross-collateralisation between facilities.
“We are delighted to have advised Peel Group on this strategic refinancing for Peel Land and Peel Waters. This refinancing simplifies Peel Land and Property’s debt facilities while delivering real benefits from an operating perspective, allowing Peel Group to deliver on their objectives over the coming years.”
Scott Douglas, Senior Director and Head of Debt Advisory Group – Centrus
“The Centrus team worked hard throughout our refinance project, providing solid support and valuable guidance. Their expertise, excellent project management and strategic advice helped us secure improved terms and deliver a successful outcome which positions us well for future growth.”
Elise Mannix, Associate Director, Corporate Development – Peel Group
For more information, please contact Scott Douglas, Senior Director or Ella Boomer, Assistant Director.
Centrus Advisors acted as financial adviser to Dorchester Living on securing a £99.6 million senior loan facility from Cheyne Capital to support the ongoing regeneration of Heyford Park, Oxfordshire. The facility will refinance existing debt and provide additional capital towards infrastructure improvements and the delivery of an 8,000-home masterplan across the 1,231-acre former US and RAF airfield. This strategic funding will accelerate Dorchester’s plans for sustainable, integrated community development, incorporating extensive residential, educational, commercial, and green spaces, while contributing to long-term value creation for the Oxfordshire region.
Centrus’ role and added value
Strategic advice on financing options, leveraging Centrus’ knowledge base to assess different debt structures to ensure they align with Dorchester’s funding objectives
Financial analysis and adaptation of the business model to overlay key debt functionality and credit outputs
Engagement with potential lenders to discuss structuring options, leading and supporting key commercial terms
Collaboration with Dorchester’s legal advisors from initial commercial negotiations through to final documentation
Designed and executed an interest rate hedging strategy
End-to-end support to drive the transaction through to closing
“We are delighted to have advised the team at Dorchester Living on the refinancing of Heyford Park with Cheyne. The refinancing will facilitate the next phase of development at one of the most exciting regeneration projects in the UK, including the build out of critical infrastructure as the Dorchester Living team continue to deliver their 8,000-home masterplan.”
Scott Douglas, Senior Director and Head of Debt Advisory – Centrus
For more information, please contact Scott Douglas, Senior Director – Debt Advisory or Ella Boomer, Assistant Director – Debt Advisory.
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