The owners of Northumbrian Water Group, Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed CK Infrastructure Holdings Ltd, have announced the sale of UK Power Networks, the UK’s biggest electricity distribution company for an equity value of £10.5 billion.

The CKI Board believes that the disposal will allow the CKI Group, which is part of the CKHH Group, to monetise its investment at an attractive valuation with significant accounting gain and cash proceeds for future investments or acquisitions.

The CKI Board and the CK Hutchison Holdings Ltd (CKHH) Board said that pursuant to the Share Purchase Agreement, each seller has agreed to severally sell its respective sale shares – the sale shares together represent 100% of the issued share capital of UK Power Networks.

Completion of the transaction is expected in mid-2026, subject to certain regulatory approvals. The transaction is also conditional on approval by the independent shareholders of the Hong-Kong listed parent companies of the sellers.

Setting out the reasons for the sale, the announcement says that since the CKI Group's acquisition of its interest in UK Power Networks in 2010, the firm has gone through a steady transformation and has achieved significant growth during the CKI Group's investment period. The company is now a leading electricity distribution network operator in the UK, consistently delivering stable financial contribution to CKI and CKHH.