By Nicholas Earl
SSE has sold a 25 per cent stake in its electricity transmission network in Scotland to the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board for £1.5bn.
The network helps transport renewable resources in the north of Scotland to where demand is highest.
It is expected to go through in early 2023, the London-listed firm revealed in a statement to investors.
The announcement concludes a year-long search to find a buyer for a stake, with the energy firm is eager to raise funds for its investments in wind farms.
The sale is part of a strategic plan unveiled by SSE in response to activist pressure.
“With significant growth forecast in transmission, bringing in Ontario Teachers’ as a minority stake partner will help fund our ambitious investment plans,” said Rob McDonald, managing director of SSEN Transmission.
It rejected a proposal from Elliott Investment Management last year to split the company in two by spinning off the renewables business.
The company oversees gas-fired and hydroelectric power plants and wind farms, alongside an electricity transmission division.
The electricity transmission business is one of three regional infrastructure monopolies across the UK, whose pylons and cables carry electricity from power generators to homes and businesses.
Shares in the company were up 0.2 per cent in today’s trading on the London Stock Exchange.
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