UK households face delayed energy support ahead of a 4% price-cap rise, while Iberdrola advances a 1.2 gigawatt Maine transmission project, according to RBC Capital Markets' Thursday note.
UK households are unlikely to get additional help with energy bills before the October price cap, government sources said, although the government could consider targeted support if another shock occurs in January, RBC said, citing the Guardian.
RBC said the UK energy price cap will rise 4% from October, with the market facing the possibility of additional upward pressure on household energy costs in the new year.
The bank said affordability challenges could shape the progress of voluntary contracts for difference in the UK in 2027, as the government seeks to reduce volatility in energy bills.
Meanwhile, Veolia, the French utility, raised 1.15 billion euros ($1.75 billion) through two bond tranches, including a 650 million-euro four-year bond at a 3.68% coupon and a 500 million-euro eight-year bond at a 4.09% coupon.
RBC said the bond offering was about three times oversubscribed, showing strong demand for French corporate debt despite rising Obligations Assimilables du Tresor yields, or French Treasury bond yields in recent months.
Spanish utility Iberdrola said its Avangrid unit won preferred-developer status for a 1.2 GW transmission line connecting northern Maine's renewable resources with the New England grid, RBC said, citing El Economista.
The project covers a 345-kilovolt, 179-kilometer line from Haynesville to Pittsfield and a 62-km extension to Coopers Mills.
Avangrid will finalize financial terms through contractual and regulatory negotiations.
Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approval remains pending. The project resembles Avangrid's 1.2 GW, 233 km New England Clean Energy Connect line, which involved a $1.65 billion investment and began operating earlier this year.
The regulator said Avangrid holds almost all required rights-of-way and makes extensive use of existing transmission corridors, making its proposal the most feasible option within a commercially reasonable timeframe.
RBC said the project supports Iberdrola's US network expansion, with the company allocating about a third of its 58 billion euros 2025 to 2028 capital spending plan to networks, including 12 billion euros for US networks.