SSE Regulatory News (SSE)

SSE Plc

Non-Discretionary Share Buyback Programme

SSE plc (the 'Company') confirmed on 30 August 2022 that it would initiate a £125m share buyback programme in line with its strategy to cap the scrip dividend option at 25% of investor take-up.  This share buyback programme is being undertaken solely in order to honour SSE's existing commitment to cap scrip dividend take-up at 25%. SSE is currently investing at record levels, ahead of profits, and has committed to reinvesting any additional profits derived from market variability directly back into energy infrastructure that will help tackle the underlying cause of the current energy crisis. In November 2021, SSE set out a lower, rebased dividend plan from 2023/24 as it prioritised growth and investment. Its current plans could see it invest £25bn in the UK and Ireland alone by the end of the decade, assuming a continued supportive policy environment.

In line with this, the Company announces that it has instructed both Credit Suisse International ('Credit Suisse') and Morgan Stanley & Co. International plc ('Morgan Stanley') in relation to an irrevocable non-discretionary programme to repurchase its ordinary shares for cancellation (the 'Programme'). The Programme will not exceed 6,904,083 ordinary shares, and the maximum pecuniary amount allocated to it is £125,000,000 (excluding expenses). The end date for the Programme will be the earlier of: when one of the aforementioned parameters are achieved; or 31 December 2022. The first half of the Programme will be executed by Credit Suisse and the second half will be executed by Morgan Stanley.

Any share purchases under the Programme will be effected within certain pre-set parameters, and in accordance with the Company's share buyback authority granted by shareholders at the Company's Annual General Meeting on 21 July 2022 (being up to 106,767,170 shares), the Market Abuse Regulation (596/2014) as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 as supplemented by the Market Abuse (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations SI2019/310 and the Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1052 of 8 March 2016 supplementing Regulation (EU) No 596/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council with regard to regulatory technical standards for the conditions applicable to buyback programmes and stabilisation measures including as it forms part of UK domestic law by virtue of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act 2018 (as amended by the Financial Conduct Authority's Technical Standards (Market Abuse Regulation) (EU Exit) Instrument 2019) and Chapter 12 of the UK Listing Rules. The Company confirms that it currently has no inside information.