Kirkland Advises Blackstone-Backed NEC on Refinancing Debt With £704 Million Facilities Agreement

Kirkland & Ellis advised the National Exhibition Centre Group (NEC), a Blackstone portfolio company, on the refinancing of its portfolio of venues in Birmingham, England, with a £653 million term facility by way of a commercial mortgage-backed securities (CMBS) loan and a £51 million capital expenditure facility.

The NEC, which includes the National Exhibition Centre, the Vox Conference Centre, the Utilita Arena, bp pulse LIVE and the International Convention Centre, is one of the biggest venues for exhibitions, meetings and conference in the UK. The facility and CMBS subscription agreement were signed on July 10, 2026, and the CMBS settlement and first utilization date occurred on July 24, 2026.

The Kirkland team included debt finance lawyers Kazik Michalski, Sara Topa, Sichen Xi and Rachel Naylor; and tax lawyers Anthony Antioch, Bryan Leighton and Ted Snell-Dyson.