Quayle Munro Limited is pleased to announce that it has advised Barclays Infrastructure Funds and Interserve on the successful financial close of a new £27m wellbeing centre for Holt Park in Leeds.

The project will see a new centre created which will be one of the first of its kind in the UK combining services provided by the council’s adult social care, youth and sports services and the local community all under one roof. The new centre is to be created on Holtdale Approach as a replacement for the current Holt Park Leisure Centre with work beginning early in January and the centre being scheduled to open in December 2013.

Barclays Infrastructure Funds and Interserve are jointly sponsoring the project, with long term fixed rate debt being provided by The Co-operative Bank.  Interserve will act as building contractor and also undertake all facilities management services throughout the 25 year operational concession period.

Leeds City Council executive member for adult health and social care Councillor Lucinda Yeadon said:
“This is fantastic news. The new centre will provide a much-needed resource for the whole community of north-west Leeds to access a whole range of health facilities and services and so we can’t wait to see it built and open.”

Quayle Munro Limited is pleased to announce that it has advised Barclays Infrastructure Funds, on its acquisition and financing of a majority stake in a 26 megawatt wind farm in Cambridgeshire, from RES Group Ltd.

Wadlow Wind Farm project was acquired from RES with senior funding from Lloyds for the acquisition and construction.

RES began constructing Wadlow Wind Farm in June 2011, and full power generation is scheduled for October 2012.  The project will comprise 13 turbines of 2 megawatts each, producing enough clean, green energy for around 15,000 homes (29 per cent of the homes in the South Cambridgeshire District).

Andy Matthews, Managing Director, Barclays Infrastructure Funds, said:
“This exciting new partnership with RES on Wadlow Wind Farm demonstrates our long term commitment to infrastructure and forms part of our continuing expansion in the renewable energy sector”.

Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.

Conducted 7 independent business reviews on NAMA connections totalling €1.5bn in debt.

Advised Swansea University in relation to its expansion to a second campus.

Ambitious plans by the University of Strathclyde for a £300 million investment in its campus have taken a significant step forward after the signing of a loan agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB).
The loan will help to fund the £89 million Technology and Innovation Centre (TIC), at Strathclyde, as well as refurbishing a number of key campus locations, signifying the EIB’s commitment to investing in the University’s vision for the future.

The Technology and Innovation Centre will transform the way the University, business and industry collaborate to bring competitive advantage to Scotland. It will bring together 850 academics, researchers and project managers from the University and its leading industrial partners to work side-by-side in a state-of-the-art building in the heart of Glasgow.

TIC will become the cornerstone of Scottish Enterprise’s new International Technology and Renewable Energy Zone (ITREZ) – a global economic hub to bring innovative businesses to Glasgow to sit alongside the University.
The loan will also bring investment to the Strathclyde Business School, providing the facilities to compete with those of comparable leading schools throughout Europe. In addition, a major overhaul and upgrade of the James Weir Building will make considerable improvements to the environment.

Professor Jim McDonald, Principal of the University of Strathclyde, said: “The signing of this agreement marks a significant milestone in our plans for investment and I am delighted that the European Investment Bank is sharing in our vision for the future.

“The Technology and Innovation Centre will help transform Glasgow and Scotland by putting the graduates and research produced by higher education at the heart of economic growth and creating job opportunities for many of our citizens. By capitalising on our leading, industry-relevant research, TIC will attract millions of pounds of inward investment to the city, drive global businesses and support the development of our highly-qualified graduates and postgraduates.

“The other improvements to the campus will better integrate our faculties and facilitate the sharing of specialised services across the University. This considerable programme of work will help us to attract leading academics and students to Strathclyde from across the globe.

“Receiving this level of support from the EIB provides us with the opportunity to take a substantial step forward and further demonstrate our commitment to accelerating the pace of research and development, the generation of high quality graduates and delivery of  benefit to companies, the economy and Scotland.”

European Investment Bank Vice President Simon Brooks said: “Refurbishment of the University of Strathclyde campus will improve teaching, learning and academic research for future generations. The European Investment Bank is committed to development of the knowledge economy across Europe and is pleased to support this important crucial investment in one of Scotland’s leading academic institutions.”

Over the last five years the European Investment Bank has provided £1.3 billion for education investment in the UK. Education projects financed by the EIB cover investments and development of education at all levels across the European Union. Between 1997, when the EIB started financing investment in education, and the end of 2010, loans worth EUR 20.4bn went to more than 175 projects in the European Union.

The £300 million investment in the campus will also include work on the Thomas Graham Building, improvements to the John Anderson Building and refurbishment of the Lord Hope and Curran buildings to accommodate the new Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences.

A new Centre for Sport and Health will also be created to replace the existing facilities currently located in three separate buildings. This will accommodate the sport element of the Department of Physical Activity for Health, as well as the Sports Union and the Centre for Sport and Recreation.

Work on TIC’s high-spec building is expected to begin at the start of next year, with the official opening taking place in early 2014. At 22,000 square metres, the landmark building will house specialist, shared and flexible laboratory facilities, enabling world-class researchers to respond to real problems in partnership with industry, government agencies and other organisations.

Quayle Munro Limited is pleased to announce that it has advised the Community Lighting Partnership (“CLP”), the successful bidder, on its contract to replace and maintain both Oldham and Rochdale’s street lighting infrastructure.  The CLP consortium comprising Pell Frischmann and Telereal Trillium, saw off competition from a rival bid led by Scottish & Southern.  Barclays and NAB are joint funders on the project.

The joint £222 million street lighting PFI project will involve the initial replacement of 38,000 new lighting columns, along with over 5,000 illuminated traffic signs and bollards.  The project has a twenty-five year tenure with the first five years covering the replacement programme.  E.ON UK is the main subcontractor to the project.

Moray Watt, Director, Quayle Munro, commented:
“We are delighted to have been part of this transaction and to have advised CLP on the financing of this joint street lighting project which will provide innovative energy saving technology to these two local authorities”.

Advised Orkney Islands Council on its new procurement vehicle to secure a design & build contract for new educational and sport facilities on the Orkney Islands.