Company: NEWEN
Filing Date: 2025-05-15
Form Type: 6-K
Source: 0001654954-25-005651
Chunk: 24

Company: NATIONAL GRID PLC
Filing Date: 2025-05-15
Form: 6-K
Chunk 24
---
 primary benefit coming from the Rights Issue, along with benefits from £0.7 billion proceeds from the sale of our final 20% stake in National Gas Transmission and £0.6 billion proceeds from the disposal of our UK Electricity System Operator business. Taking into account the benefit of our hybrid debt, adjusted gearing as at 31 March 2025 was 60% ( 2024 : 67% ) .

Retained cash flow as a proportion of adjusted net debt was 9.8%. We remain committed to maintaining the current strong overall investment grade credit rating for the Group. National Grid currently has strong investment grade credit ratings across almost all of its major operating companies, as well as senior unsecured debt ratings at the holding company, National Grid plc, at Baa2/BBB/BBB from Moody's, S&P and Fitch respectively. We consider these ratings optimise our cost of capital and deliver appropriate access to capital markets. We expect to maintain credit metrics above our thresholds for our current group credit ratings through to at least the end of the RIIO-T3 price control period, with thresholds of 10% for S&P's FFO/adjusted net debt, and 7% for Moody's RCF/adjusted net debt.

**Dividend increase of 3.21% compared to 'rebased' dividend per share for 2024/25**

The Board has recommended a final dividend to 30.88p per ordinary share ($2.0545 per American Depository Share), which will be paid on 17 July 2025 to shareholders on the register of members as at 30 May 2025. If approved, this will bring the full-year dividend to 46.72p per ordinary share, representing an increase of 3.21% to the 45.26p 'rebased' dividend per share (as explained below) for 2023/24. This is in line with the increase in average UK CPIH inflation for the year ended 31 March 2025 as set out in our dividend policy.

As part of the Rights Issue, the Board announced that the overall cash dividend level would be maintained, with the additional shares from the Rights Issue resulting in a reduction to calculated dividend per share. The total dividend to shareholders (cash plus scrip) in respect of the financial year to 31 March 2024 was £2,167 million (58.52p per share). This total dividend of £2,167 million spread across a higher number of shares