Economic infrastructure update Q2 2025

“The second quarter of 2025 has been focused on crystallising some key milestones for several of our portfolio companies. We successfully closed critical debt financings for two of our telecom-focused portfolio companies: Wessex Internet and DIGI Andalucía. We also completed the re-leasing of some of our UK rolling stock fleets, demonstrating continued robust delivery on our strategy to finance core fleets of passenger trains. We were pleased to see the progress of some sustainability initiatives, including a new focus on biodiversity at our Finnish energy company Outokummun Energia. This quarter also marked the 10-year anniversary of our first investment. Having grown to a portfolio of 21 investments across three funds and nine countries, we are delighted to support the ongoing development of investments through knowhow sharing with our investors and investee companies.”

Dominic Helmsley, Head of Economic Infrastructure

Investment updates

Wessex Internet secures £50 million debt package from National Wealth Fund

Wessex Internet, our second investment in the UK fibre-to-the-home market, has secured a £50 million investment from the UK’s National Wealth Fund (NWF). This marks a significant milestone in Wessex Internet’s mission to deliver full-fibre broadband to ultra-rural communities. The capital injection will enable the company to expand its network coverage to 140,000 hard-to-reach homes and businesses across the south-west of England – a region historically underserved by traditional telecom providers.

This investment is one of the most substantial rural broadband commitments in 2025 and reflects growing institutional confidence in Wessex Internet’s business model, operational expertise, and long-term growth strategy. The company has demonstrated consistent commercial performance and a scalable approach to rural deployment, uniquely leveraging close partnerships with landowners and innovative rural build techniques to reduce costs and disruption.

Founded in 2010, Wessex Internet has grown from a local initiative into a regional leader, currently serving 40,000 premises across Dorset, Somerset, Wiltshire, and Hampshire. The company was also the first provider to secure a Project Gigabit contract – the UK government’s flagship funding programme for rural broadband – receiving £72 million in public funding in 2022. Combined with the NWF investment, the capital raised will allow the business to scale its footprint to reach its objective of 140,000 premises.

This funding underscores Wessex Internet’s strong fundamentals and its pivotal role in addressing the UK’s digital infrastructure gap — offering investors exposure to a high-impact, high-growth segment of the telecoms market.

“We're delighted to see Wessex Internet secure £50 million of funding from the National Wealth Fund. This validates the strength of the company’s approach to rural connectivity. As an existing investor committed to delivering reliable infrastructure to local communities, this funding represents a significant boost for our shared mission. We look forward to continuing our work alongside Wessex Internet's management team, and leveraging our experience in the infrastructure sector to deliver this next phase of growth to historically under-served rural areas.”

Alex Anderson, Investment Director

Rock Rail South Western successfully re-leased and serving more passengers daily

Our new fleet of Alstom 90 Arterio trains was successfully re-leased in May 2025. This marked a significant milestone in the life of the fleet and is an endorsement of their core infrastructure characteristics supporting suburban network of Southwest London and the surrounding areas.

In May 2025, South-Western Railway was one of the first operators to be brought back into government control through its nationalisation programme. The timely process underscores the seamless transition of an operator into government control, and the ongoing strong relationship between the Aberdeen Investments / Rock Rail partnership and the Department for Transport.

“We are delighted to have reached this milestone alongside our partners at Rock Rail. The fleet offers additional capacity and a superior experience, which has been well-received by passengers and drivers. We look forward to working with the government, as the remaining fleet enters passenger service.”

Nick Flynn, Investment Director

DIGI Andalucía – successful debt raise and further acquisitions

DIGI Andalucía is a joint venture that was launched in September 2023 between Aberdeen Investments and DIGI Spain (a DIGI Group subsidiary). The company has recently strengthened its capital structure by securing a €81 million senior-debt facility, along with a €3 million revolving credit facility from a banking consortium. This facility will support further expansion of the network.

The company was created to accelerate fibre deployment within the south of Spain across Andalucía and Extremadura. After an initial acquisition of around 1.35 million Homes Passed at the start of the joint venture, the platform rapidly scaled, acquiring two further batches of Homes Passed over 2023-2024, bringing fibre connectivity to 2.25 million homes. The goal remains to reach 2.5 million homes by the end of 2025.

“This financing is another positive step forward in our partnership with Digi Spain. We are excited to develop this relationship, and to support Digi Spain’s growth in Andalucía and Extremadura. Our partnership’s commitment remains focused on developing high-quality infrastructure, delivering outstanding customer service, and democratising access to high-speed internet.”

Soti Calochristos, Senior Investment Director

Sustainability initiatives

Biodiversity enhancement at Outokummun Energia Oy

In partnership with Ramboll Finland Oy, Outokummun Energia Oy (OKE), has launched a biodiversity enhancement project focused on aerial power line corridors. Following a baseline assessment in 2024 to identify the most critical sites for fauna and flora within these corridors, action began in early summer 2025. This included grazing, mowing, and controlling invasive species to support native habitats and species. Surveys of birds, frogs and insects are also underway, with further measures planned until 2030. The initiative aims to improve ecological resilience, while enhancing recreational value for local communities and attracting visitors to boost the local economy.

OKE is positioned as a leader in these activities. It serves as a local champion for biodiversity, with the hope that other regional companies take similar action. The first year of operations has been a large success, and we will monitor the impact of OKE’s actions on local species and habitat types.

Our latest sustainable investing content

Soti Calochristos, Senior Investment Director, and Alister Bankhead, Investment Manager, recently met with Infrastructure Investor. They discussed our approach to sourcing investments that are embedded in local energy-transition efforts. They discussed how forging long-term partnerships with municipalities and local industrial partners can generate value for shareholders, while still achieving decarbonisation targets. Please see further details in the article below: Aberdeen: Focusing on the local energy transition
Ruairi Revell, Head of Sustainability, participated in a roundtable for Infrastructure Investor’s upcoming issue on sustainable finance. He shared insights on how sustainability factors are integrated into investment processes, including risk assessment, asset resilience, and value creation. The discussion also covered practical examples from across the portfolio. Please see further details in the article below: Download the July/August 2025 issue of Infrastructure Investor

Leveraging our network

Connecting our energy portfolio companies to ensure shared learnings

In June, Aberdeen Investments facilitated Outokummun Energia’s (OKE) strategic offsite in Poland, supporting sharing of ideas amongst our investments. As OKE continues to champion energy transition and greater efficiency, connecting with CERI (our solar platform) and Nomad Electric (our operations and maintenance partner) offered numerous operational insights. These included best practices for industrial-scale developments, operations, maintenance, and data management.

As we focus on lower mid-market infrastructure investments, we see great potential in harnessing the wealth of knowledge in our 21 investments. This helps to achieve the development objectives across the whole portfolio.

Events

• In May, we were proud to host our Annual General Meeting in London. This was a brilliant opportunity to bring together our investors, teams, senior advisers, and partners from across our portfolios. It was a pleasure to share updates about our portfolio assets and to highlight the meaningful progress we have made so far this year. The day was filled with insightful panels and presentations, exploring key themes across the sectors in which we invest: transport, digital and energy. Each plays a vital role in shaping the future of infrastructure. The sector panel sessions were:

Transport
Nicholas Flynn, Investment Director, hosted a timely discussion with several of our senior advisers, exploring the future of transport. The conversation covered key developments in leasing and the growing momentum behind decarbonisation across the sector
Digital
Alex Anderson, Investment Director, and David Thatcher, Non-Executive Director at Wessex Internet and Airband, provided a comprehensive overview of the UK digital market. Their discussion highlighted current challenges and the significant opportunities emerging in the sector.
Energy
Maciej Tarasiuk, Head of Investments, was joined by Anni Sarvaranta, Chief Executive Officer of Auris Energia, for an in-depth look at the European energy landscape. They examined local and regional trends, with a focus on the accelerating shift toward greener, more sustainable energy solutions.

• On 22 September 2025, Maciej Tarasiuk, Head of Investments, will be presenting at the Financial Investigator conference in Amsterdam. The presentation (Unlocking sustainable value: the role of infrastructure small-caps in the energy transition) will focus on Aberdeen Investments’ lower mid-market infrastructure strategy. We will discuss how it addresses the energy transition challenge, while integrating financial, resilience, and ESG objectives.

• Aberdeen Investments will sponsor the IPEM conference in Paris on 24-26 September 2025. We look forward to connecting with investors and stakeholders, and discussing the latest trends in infrastructure and our plans for the upcoming years.