International support services and construction group Interserve and its joint venture partner Kajima, have achieved financial close for the National Centre of Excellence PPP project for the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS) near Edinburgh, UK .

The project comprises the building of facilities for the processing and testing of blood, tissues and cells as well as quality and regulatory functions, research and development, offices and garaging on the Heriot-Watt Research Park. The development is being funded using the Scottish Government's Non-Profit Distributing (NPD) model, which is managed by the Scottish Futures Trust (SFT) on behalf of the Scottish Government.

The project is a 50:50 split between Interserve and Kajima. Equity partners provided £3.4 million (US$6.7 million) in equity for the project, while Norddeutsche Landesbank provided a £36.3 million (US$71.5 million) senior term loan.

The project will be developed on a design, build, finance, and maintenance basis for a period of 25 years from the end of construction.

Interserve, which will also undertake construction on the project, will start work on site at Heriot-Watt Research Park later this month, with completion expected by November 2016. Interserve's facilities management division will maintain the new facility for a 25 year period.

The JV was selected as the preferred bidder in early March 2014.

The project is part of the Scottish Government's £750 million pipeline of infrastructure health projects and is being procured under the Scottish Government's Non Profit Distributing (NPD) model, managed by the Scottish Futures Trust.