ScottishPower, the UK energy company owned by Iberdrola S.A., has successfully secured a £600 million green financing package from the United Kingdom National Wealth Fund to support the development of the Eastern Green Link 4 (EGL4) subsea electricity interconnector. EGL4 is a strategic piece of electricity infrastructure that will help unlock the full potential of renewable power generation in Great Britain. It is part of a broader set of subsea cables forming an “electricity superhighway” between Scotland and England, designed to transmit large volumes of clean energy from wind power and other renewable sources to high-demand areas further south.

Eastern Green Link 4 cable will be capable of conveying up to 2 GW of electricity over approximately 530 km of submarine and onshore cable, sufficient to power the equivalent of around 1.5 million UK households. The financing from the National Wealth Fund complements a previous £600 million support provided to ScottishPower by the National Wealth Fund in 2025. It also shows the ongoing collaboration between public capital and private investment to strengthen the UK’s grid infrastructure and advance the country’s clean power goals.

Why is Eastern Green Link 4 Important?

UK’s electricity system is undergoing a profound transformation as the country accelerates the transition away from fossil fuels and toward net-zero carbon emissions targets by 2050 and Scotland’s target of 2045. This shift depends not only on adding renewable generation capacity like offshore wind but also on strengthening grid infrastructure to carry electricity efficiently across regions.

Traditionally, Scotland’s abundant wind resources have outstripped local demand, while many of England’s population centers import electricity from afar. Reinforcing the transmission network is therefore critical to reducing constraint costs and lowering reliance on imported fossil fuels. It will also serve as a key balancing point for supply and demand across the country.

Additionally, Eastern Green Link 4 is one of a series of subsea high-voltage direct current (HVDC) transmission links. EGL4 follows earlier phases of the Eastern Green Links initiative including EGL2 that are intended to facilitate this energy transition. Such links convert alternating current (AC) to direct current (DC) for more efficient long-distance power transfer and then back again at the other end for integration into the local grid. EGL4 will connect Fife, Scotland with Norfolk, England, forming a backbone for future renewable integration in the region.

The financing from the National Wealth Fund also demonstrates growing alignment between government-backed institutional capital and private sector clean energy deployment. It will help ScottishPower manage long tenors and capital intensity while matching debt profiles with asset life cycles. The National Energy System Operator’s estimates also highlight the scale of investment required: upwards of £58 billion by 2035 to support grid reinforcement and integration of clean power across Great Britain.

Financing and Spend Overview

Financing Package: £600 million green financing from the National Wealth Fund.

Total Investment: Part of a wider £1.35 billion financing package. Includes commercial bank arrangers such as Bank of America as the sole debt arranger who is historically part of the broader program that supports several grid upgrade initiatives.

Use of Funds: To advance development of the EGL4 HVDC subsea and underground link and other priority grid infrastructure projects.

Projected Energy Delivery: Equivalent to powering roughly 1.5 million households per year.

Fact Sheet for Eastern Green Link 4

Location: Subsea link between Fife, Scotland and Norfolk, England

Length: 530 km (subsea and underground)

Capacity: 2 GW HVDC transmission system

Technology: High Voltage Direct Current (HVDC) subsea and underground cable with converter stations at each end

Primary Purpose: Transport renewable energy from generation centers in Scotland to demand centers in England. Also address grid challenges and support the Clean Power 2030 pathway

Financing: £600 million green financing from the National Wealth Fund

Objectives: Strengthen energy security, reduce constraint costs, and facilitate further deployment of renewable generation across the UK.

Eastern Green Link 4 Project Partners and Stakeholders

Developer and Transmission Owner

• ScottishPower (through Iberdrola Group)
• National Grid Electricity Transmission (joint venture partner)

Public Finance Partner

• National Wealth Fund (United Kingdom)

Commercial Lenders and Arrangers

• Bank of America (sole debt arranger)
• Other commercial banks: Bankinter, BNP Paribas, Lloyds Bank, NatWest, Banco Sabadell as part of wider portfolio financing

Technical and Engineering Partners

• Tenders are ongoing; past precedent for subsea cable projects includes suppliers such as Prysmian, Hitachi Energy, and NKT for related Eastern Green Links projects

Regulators and System Planners

• Ofgem (UK energy regulator)
• National Energy System Operator (NESO)
• UK Government Department for Energy Security and Net Zero for policy support

Eastern Green Link Project Outlook

The Eastern Green Link program is an important piece of the UK’s energy infrastructure evolution. It is laid out to enable reliable and efficient transmission of renewable energy generated in Scotland to major demand centers across England.

By addressing long-standing grid constraints and unlocking additional transmission capacity, the UK can accelerate its transition to a cleaner, more resilient energy system that supports both climate goals and long-term energy security.

The National Wealth Fund’s continued collaboration with ScottishPower also points toward the importance of blended public and private financing solutions in catalyzing major clean energy infrastructure.