GIB green mission continues after sale delivers £2.3 billion to UK government
In August 2017, UKGI, on behalf of the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, successfully completed the sale of the Green Investment Bank (GIB) to Macquarie Group Limited. The £2.3bn transaction returned all the taxpayer funding invested in GIB since its creation, including set-up costs, and generated a profit of around £186m.
The UKGI team managed the transaction through a competitive process and led the complex negotiations to ensure that the government’s sale objectives were achieved. As well as securing value for money for the taxpayer, UKGI led the legislative process to remove GIB from the government’s balance sheet so that GIB could benefit from raising funds externally, a key transaction and policy objective.
As part of the acquisition negotiations, Macquarie made a series of commitments which mean that GIB’s green mission will continue in the private sector. Macquarie committed to investing £3 billion in green energy projects over the next three years, operating in accordance with GIB’s established green purpose of advancing the UK’s commitment to the low carbon economy.
UKGI was instrumental in the creation and development of the GIB, the first institution of its kind. Launched in 2012, GIB has been a significant success story, supporting 100 green infrastructure projects in the UK under government ownership. For every £1 it has invested, it has attracted approximately another £3 of third party capital, so attracting new investors to the green infrastructure market.