PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island Infrastructure Bank, the state’s central hub for financing infrastructure improvements for municipalities, businesses and homeowners, has secured $100 million in Clean Water State Revolving Fund bond financing to support clean water projects across the state, the bank recently announced.
The $100 million in funding consists of a Series A $75 million in open market bonds and a Series B $25 million direct loan, both set for 30 years at a 3.14% interest rate. The Series A bonds earned top AAA ratings from both S&P Global Ratings and Fitch Ratings.
Expanding Women’s Health in Newport
South County Health has expanded its award-winning Center for Women’s Health to Newport, offering a…
Learn More
The bond financing includes more than $7 million in loan forgiveness provided through the federal Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, according to the infrastructure bank.
The bond funds will support construction of the Narragansett Bay Commission’s sewer overflow project and other infrastructure upgrades.
Specific upgrades of the sewer project include a massive 2.2-mile tunnel under Pawtucket and Central Falls, designed to cut overflows by 98% and treat stormwater before it reaches Narragansett Bay. The deal was led by RBC Capital Markets as senior managing underwriter, Hilltop Securities as financial adviser and Hinckley Allen as bond counsel.
Since 2003, the Narragansett Bay Commission has used low-cost financing through the infrastructure bank to complete two phases of its sewer project, keeping more than 1 billion gallons of polluted water out of the bay each year, RIIB said. The effort has greatly improved water quality.
“The CSO is among the largest infrastructure projects in Rhode Island’s history and has helped to dramatically improve the health of Narragansett Bay,” said William Fazioli, executive director of the infrastructure bank. “This is a true demonstration of the importance of investing in infrastructure and utilizing Rhode Island’s Clean Water State Revolving Fund and federal resources from the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act.”
Laurie Horridge, executive director of the Narragansett Bay Commission, expressed gratitude for the decadeslong partnership with the infrastructure bank.
Meanwhile, clean water advocate Rep. Seth Magaziner, D-R.I., said the funding’s benefit will be two-fold.
“This funding will make the Narragansett Bay cleaner and sewer bills more affordable for thousands of Rhode Islanders,” he said.
Matthew McNulty is a PBN staff writer. He can be reached at McNulty@PBN.com or on X at @MattMcNultyNYC.
