Ampeak proposes delaying bond principal repayments by about two years and raising interest to 13%
Key Facts
On November 12, 2026, Ampeak Energy said it was seeking to amend the terms of three five-year debt bonds issued between 2017 and 2019 through Atlantis Future Energy and Atlantis Ocean Energy, with backing from Abundance Investment. The proposal would defer principal repayments by about two years and raise interest on all the bonds to 13% a year from January 1, 2027. The company said reforms to energy-project grid connections could change the timing of value realization across its portfolio, and that connection dates for its projects had not yet been confirmed. It said timing delays, rather than an inability to pay, had led it to adopt a cautious planning assumption for amending principal repayment maturities. The proposal is subject to a bondholder vote.
The current repayment schedule includes a £2.0 million principal payment on December 31, 2026, followed by a £3.0 million payment on December 31, 2027, and a final payment of about £7.7 million on June 30, 2029. The company proposes moving the three payments, in the same order, to December 31, 2028, December 31, 2029, and June 30, 2031. The first payment would therefore move from the end of 2026 to the end of 2028, and the second from the end of 2027 to the end of 2029. The final payment would move from June 2029 to June 2031. Ampeak says the schedule reflects its assumption of an approximately two-year delay in the timing of principal repayments.
The request also includes deferring the interest payment due on June 30, 2027, to December 31 of that year. For interest, the company proposes raising the rate to 13% a year from January 1, 2027, for all the bonds. The current terms provide for the rate to rise to 11% on January 1, 2027, then to 12% on January 1, 2028, and to 13% on January 1, 2029. Under the proposal, the increase to the higher rate would come two years earlier than under the current schedule. Ampeak said it expects to fund ongoing operating costs and the increased interest payments from its existing cash resources, alongside future operating cash flows linked to the AW1 project.
The company linked its request to amend the maturities to connection reforms implemented in 2025 and begun by the UK's National Energy System Operator late that year. It said the reforms may have changed the timing of value realization for its battery-storage portfolio, while it awaits confirmation of connection dates for its projects. In its February 2026 update, the operator had expected to issue connection offers for transmission and large embedded projects between mid-May and mid-September 2026. It also expected offers for distribution projects between mid-October 2026 and mid-March 2027. The operator said the reforms were approved for implementation from June 10, 2025, after Ofgem approved the proposals.
Ampeak describes its project portfolio as comprising about 770 megawatts of capacity and 2.6 gigawatt-hours of battery-storage capacity. Among the projects it cited is Afon Wysg 1, or AW1, with a capacity of 240 megawatt-hours, which reached financial close in August 2025 with total funding of £67.4 million. The financing included £45.3 million in non-recourse project finance from Norddeutsche Landesbank Girozentrale. The company said civil works at AW1 were complete and that the batteries and main equipment had arrived on site. It also plans to double the project's capacity to 480 megawatt-hours and is seeking to complete financing for the expansion after the original project enters full commercial operation.
The company said AW1 was on budget and on schedule, with energization expected in November 2026 and full commercial operation expected in the first quarter of 2027. It says the expansion to 480 megawatt-hours could be delivered in less than 12 months from financial close. In Scotland, Mey BESS received Section 36 consent from Scottish ministers in January 2026 for a battery project with installed capacity of up to 300 megawatts and storage capacity of 1,200 megawatt-hours. Ampeak added that expanding AW1 alongside the Uskmouth project could raise storage capacity at the Uskmouth complex to more than 1 gigawatt-hour. The company links these projects to its portfolio, which it says totals about 770 megawatts and 2.6 gigawatt-hours.
Approval of the repayment amendments requires the consent of holders representing 75% of the value in each bond class. The company expects to announce the voting results during December 2026. Alongside that timeline, Ampeak said AW1 is expected to be energized in November 2026, with full commercial operation targeted for the first quarter of 2027. The vote will determine whether the proposed repayment and interest dates take effect. The request to amend the terms comes as the company continues to await confirmation of grid-connection dates for its projects.