Clifford Chance

Clifford Chance advises GRIDSERVE on first certified green financing to expand EV network

International law firm Clifford Chance advised GRIDSERVE on over half a billion pounds in certified green financing to accelerate net zero transport with a huge expansion of its UK-wide EV charging network.

This financing is both the largest debt raise globally for a privately-owned charge point operator and the first officially designated green loan for EV charging infrastructure in the UK.

The refinancing of its existing and future electric vehicle charging Super Hubs and Electric Forecourts, as well as related infrastructure including operational solar and battery projects, will allow GRIDSERVE to accelerate the upgrade and expansion of its UK network. Projected to include the installation of more than 500 new Electric Super Hubs nationwide, GRIDSERVE will also deliver more than 3,000 new High Power chargepoints with class-leading speeds of up to 350kW, capable of providing 100 miles of charge in only 5 minutes.

GRIDSERVE is a technology-enabled sustainable energy business which, through its pioneering and multi award-winning Sun-to-Wheel platform, develops, delivers and operates world class customer-focused electric vehicle charging networks powered by solar energy and batteries.

The multidisciplinary Clifford Chance team was led by Infrastructure partners Julia House and Praveen Jagadish with support from director Leonhard Rudolph (Construction), senior associate Kellie Grubb and associate Anna Trine Raudsepp (Infrastructure Finance), senior associate Joseph Woodworth and associate Oliver James (Energy and Infrastructure), director Martin Kolmar and associate Julian Wuttke (Private Equity) and partner Anne Drakeford and senior associate Phil Sandu (Derivatives).

Commenting on the transaction, Praveen Jagadish noted that "Early movers in the EV charging space, including GRIDSERVE, have had to be brave and make bets in the number of different directions, both to get ahead of charging use trends and to access subsidy schemes or favourable regulation. It's great to see GRIDSERVE now able to capitalise on that good early work by accelerating their scaling and investing in differentiating their consumer offering."