General

Members will have read newspaper headlines over the last week to ten days suggesting pension funds "almost collapsed amid market meltdown" or were "hours from disaster" but these were simply not true. It would be highly unusual for a scheme to fail unless the sponsor was no longer there to support it.

It is important to make it clear that the Uniper Group of the ESPS is not at risk of collapse - it is also clear there have been liquidity issues in some UK pension funds, but that does not mean the schemes themselves are at risk of collapse although some will have some continuing liquidity issues over the next few months.

It should also be noted that the sponsor, Uniper UK Limited continues to fully support the Uniper Group of the ESPS.

Also as a member of a Defined Benefit arrangement the market movements do not directly impact what you are paid and the Uniper Group continues to have more than adequate funds to pay pensions or other benefits as they fall due.

The Trustees are keeping a very close eye on the assets alongside its Investment Managers and they will continue to monitor the position closely.

Transfers

General

• In a defined benefit plan it is the trustee and sponsors responsibility to ensure a members benefits are paid. If a member transfers their benefits away from the Uniper Group of the ESPS they become responsible for asset investments and would be directly impacted by market movements in the future. 

For those members who have already left Uniper and received a guaranteed transfer value quotation:

• Values within the guaranteed quotation will remain valid until the expiry date of the quotation (3 months)

For those members looking to transfer their benefits away from the Uniper Group of the ESPS:

• The transfer value represents the expected cost to the scheme of providing a members benefits. As gilt yields have risen the amount a scheme needs today to meet the benefits in the future falls.  This is then mirrored in a falling transfer value. 
• The Trustees have seen transfer values fall significantly during 2022 due to these market movements in gilt yields.  This does not imply anything about the security of the defined benefits promised.

Any queries should be directed either to Adrian Furnell Secretary to Trustees (adrian.furnell@uniper.energy) or Ruth Blackburn UK Pensions Manager (ruth.blackburn@uniper.energy)