Rock Infrastructure has appointed two new partners

  • Rock

Rock Infrastructure has appointed two new partners, Nick English (formerly Babcock & Brown and Amber) and Celia Carlisle (formerly General Counsel to the Olympic Delivery Authority) who bring with them a wealth of experience and creativity

Nick English joined Rock Infrastructure on 1st August. Nick brings with him financial and commercial experience as equity sponsor and financial advisor gained at Hambros Bank, Societe Generale, Babcock & Brown and Amber Infrastructure

His focus has been across a number of sectors and he has most recently been working in the transport sector on amongst others:

  • Thameslink – commercial advisor and equity sponsor for the Bombardier consortium
  • IEP – equity sponsor and financial advisor for the Siemens/Bombardier consortium
  • Gold Coast Light Rail PPP – financial sponsor
  • Diabolo Northern Rail infrastructure PPP (first PPP in Belgium) – equity sponsor and financial advisor

Celia Carlisle started work with Rock Infrastructure on 1 August. She has 18 years’ experience advising on projects and infrastructure for both public and private sectors and worked for the last 5 years as General Counsel at the Olympic Delivery Authority

Her experience includes:

  • The letting of all contracts by the ODA for the preparation of venues, infrastructure and transport for the London 2012 Olympic Games
  • Successful bidding, negotiation and financing of Tubelines PPP and Powerlink Power PFI with London Underground and TfL
  • Successful bidding, negotiation, financing and re-financing of numerous PFIs in the schools and hospitals sectors

Celia is a qualified lawyer and has extensive experience of working in the PPP market. She has worked for the private and public sectors and managed in house teams, project teams and external lawyers and consultants, with responsibility for all legal matters, governance and compliance and assurance. She has worked in the Transport, Health, Social and Power sectors

Nick English says “I have known Mark Swindell since we worked together on one of the first PFI deals in the mid-1990s and am very excited by the Rock concept. I am sure that our creativity and determination can add real value. His skills and experience compliment mine and those of the team”

Celia Carlisle says “I am looking forward to working in a dynamic solution driven organisation which combines the best PPP financial, legal and commercial expertise into a team that can come up with the answers to delivering smarter and more efficient public procurements in a challenging political and funding environment”

Rock is currently working as commercial partner with the public sector on Mersey Gateway and with private sector partners on a number of mandates where there is a clear need for Rock’s dynamic approach to creating new mechanisms and structures to deliver major infrastructure

Mark Swindell says “I am delighted that both Nick and Celia have agreed to join Rock with Nick, Matt and myself. Having worked with them both I am convinced that they will help Rock deliver innovative solutions to the public and private sectors in order to meet the demands of a rapidly changing PPP market”

Rock is now working on integrating leading edge ideas such as:

  • TIF funding
  • EIB 2020 bonds
  • Government guarantees
  • Open Road Tolling systems
  • Local Authority governance
  • into current infrastructure PPP projects, to provide faster, better and more efficient procurement of large-scale infrastructure

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Driving Net Zero: How Rock Road 
Is Funding the UK’s Bus Transition

Accelerating the shift to clean, affordable, zero-emission transport

Year
2025
Category
Rock Road
Share

The Challenge

The UK bus network is at the heart of everyday travel – but over 30,000 diesel buses still need replacing to achieve a fully zero-emission fleet.

While around 5,000 battery-electric buses are already on the road, the high upfront cost of electric vehicles and depot electrification continues to slow the transition. Traditional funding routes — such as government grants or short-term bank finance – have helped start the journey but cannot support decarbonisation at the scale required.

A new, sustainable funding model was needed: one that could attract long-term capital, spread costs fairly, and give operators and authorities confidence in the future.

The Solution

In 2021, Rock launched Rock Road to deliver exactly that –  applying its proven infrastructure financing approach from the rail sector to the UK’s clean bus revolution.

Working with Aviva, the National Wealth Fund, and HSBC, Rock created a dedicated investment platform that channels infrastructure-style finance from pension funds and institutional investors directly into zero-emission bus projects.

This model provides:
  • Access to billions in long-term private capital for fleets and depot electrification.
  • Low-cost, sustainable finance tailored to public-sector needs.
  • Comprehensive risk transfer, including residual value and battery performance, supported by Rock’s in-house team of engineers and asset managers.

Impact

The platform has already raised £100 million, with capacity to scale to £1 billion per year over the next decade – providing a consistent source of affordable capital for local authorities and operators.

Rock’s model ensures that the total cost of ownership (TCO) of electric buses can now be lower than diesel equivalents, thanks to both cheaper long-term finance and reduced operating costs.

In London, Rock has financed 120 zero-emission buses under 7-year leases aligned with Transport for London’s contract lengths. This structure gives operators flexibility and certainty:

  • Buses can be returned, renewed, or upgraded at the end of term.
  • Lease rates are predictable and capped.
  • Ownership and residual risks sit with Rock, not the operator.

The Future

Rock Road’s ambition is to support the rollout of zero-emission fleets across the UK – helping local authorities and operators meet climate goals without overextending public budgets.

By leveraging limited government funding to attract large-scale private capital – for example, £10 million of public investment unlocking over £250 million in total funding – Rock’s model accelerates decarbonisation while keeping costs low for the public sector.

Our ambition is to make electric buses the default choice - not because of subsidy, but because they are the best economic and environmental option.
Louis Swindell
Commercial Director, Rock Road