US, London represent San Francisco PUC on US$711 million water refunding issuance

A cross-border team from our San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York and London offices served as bond counsel to the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission (SFPUC) on its recent US$711 million water refunding issuance.

This bond issuance is part of a 14-year water system improvement program targeting aging infrastructure, improving the ability to withstand earthquakes and enhancing environmental features. The program is 98-percent complete and is expected to be completed by the fiscal year 2022.

As part of the water refunding issuance, US$341 million of Green Bonds will be issued and listed on the International Securities Market of the London Stock Exchange Group. The Green Bonds are certified by the Climate Bonds Initiative under its Climate Bonds Water Criteria and aligned with ICMA's Green Bond Principles.

The SFPUC has now offered more than US$2.5 billion in Green Bonds, making it among the global leaders in the field of climate change financing initiatives.

A longtime Norton Rose Fulbright client, SFPUC supplies water to 27 public and private water agencies in San Francisco County and three surrounding counties and to about 2.7 million retail customers.

The Norton Rose Fulbright team included Eric Tashman and Cliff Gerber (San Francisco); Stepan Haytayan (Los Angeles); Patti Wu (New York) and Vishal Mawkin and Peter Young (London).