SSE (LSE:SSE) Share Price This Week: Ofgem Grid Decisions, Scrip Dividend Update, and Analyst Targets — Outlook for the Week Ahead (Updated 14.12.2025)

Updated: Sunday, 14 December 2025 (UK markets closed; latest official SSE share-price reference is the Friday close).

SSE plc shares ended the week at 2,108p (Friday close, 12 December 2025), with investor attention pulled in three directions at once: UK grid regulation (Ofgem), SSE’s financing strategy for its huge capex pipeline, and near-term shareholder returns via the interim dividend and scrip alternative. ^[1]

This week’s story is less about a single “wow” headline and more about a familiar utility-market equation: regulated returns + build-out execution + cost of capital. When Ofgem moves, and when interest-rate expectations wobble, SSE tends to feel it.

Where SSE stock stands right now

SSE’s investor site lists the share price at 2,108.00 GBX, “current as of Friday 12th December 2025.” ^[2]

That matters because Sunday “prices” are really narratives waiting for Monday’s open.

The key SSE news from the last few days

1) Ofgem’s RIIO-3 decision: the regulatory backdrop SSE can’t ignore

On 4 December 2025, Ofgem said it was unlocking £28bn of initial investment to maintain and upgrade gas and electricity networks, rising to an estimated £90bn by 2031 across both systems. Ofgem also flagged bill impacts and claimed net savings versus “not expanding the grid,” including an expectation that electricity grid expansion could reduce bills by £50 by 2031 (with broader net bill impacts discussed in the release). ^[3]

Why SSE investors care: SSE’s value is heavily tied to its regulated networks (SSEN Transmission and SSEN Distribution). RIIO-3 (including RIIO‑T3 for electricity transmission) sets the tempo for allowed revenues, performance incentives, and the credibility of multi‑year build plans.

SSE itself publicly referenced Ofgem’s RIIO‑T3 Final Determination in its company news flow on 4 December 2025, underscoring that the decision landed as a meaningful milestone. ^[4]

2) Ofgem’s “electricity superhighways”: updated dates and early funding

On 9 December 2025, Ofgem approved updated delivery dates and early investment for three major transmission projects: Eastern Green Link 3 (EGL3), Eastern Green Link 4 (EGL4), and GWNC. It set new target delivery dates of December 2033 for GWNC and August 2034 for EGL3/EGL4, alongside incentive/penalty mechanisms for delivery performance. ^[5]

Ofgem also said a NESO cost-benefit analysis indicated redesigned projects could deliver a £3–6bn benefit to consumers versus the original network design, largely via earlier achievable delivery dates and avoided constraint costs. ^[6]

Crucially for SSE linkage: Ofgem’s notes say EGL3 and EGL4 are joint ventures between National Grid Electricity Transmission (NGET), Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission (SHET) and Scottish Power Transmission (SPT). ^[7]
(SSEN Transmission is the trading name for Scottish Hydro Electric Transmission, part of SSE’s networks group.) ^[8]

Translation: investors got more clarity on timing, early-stage funding permissioning, and the reality that these grid builds are marathon projects with very long-duration execution risk—and potentially very long-duration regulated returns.

3) SSE’s updated Sustainability Financing Framework (10 Dec)

SSE published an updated Sustainability Financing Framework on 10 December 2025, explicitly positioning it as financing architecture aligned to its recently announced £33bn five‑year investment plan. SSE said it has issued 10 Green Bonds since 2017 with over £5.0bn outstanding, and it also has £3.0bn of sustainability‑linked committed revolving credit facilities. ^[9]

In the same announcement, SSE described two “use‑of‑proceeds” categories—Renewable Energy and Electricity Networks—and said S&P Global’s Shades of Green awarded Dark Green ratings to both, while also confirming alignment with 2025 versions of green and sustainability‑linked principles. ^[10]

Why that can matter for the stock this week: utilities are capital-hungry creatures. A credible, externally‑reviewed financing framework can support bond market access, pricing, and investor comfort—especially when a company is openly ramping capex.

4) Interim dividend: SSE confirms scrip reference price and timetable (11 Dec)

On 11 December 2025, SSE confirmed the scrip reference price for the interim dividend (year ending 31 March 2026) at 2,146p per share. The dividend/scrip issue date is 30 January 2026, and the deadline for scrip elections/withdrawals is 2 January 2026. ^[11]

SSE also stated that if all eligible shareholders elected scrip, the maximum new shares to be issued would be 12,036,799, roughly ~1.0% of issued share capital (excluding treasury shares) on the record date—useful context for anyone thinking about dilution versus cash conservation. ^[12]

5) Planning consent: Cambushinnie substation (11 Dec)

SSE’s company news feed also highlighted that planning consent was granted for the Cambushinnie 400kV substation in Perthshire, described as a key element of SSEN Transmission’s proposed Beauly to Denny overhead line upgrade. ^[13]

These planning steps rarely move the share price in a single day—but they’re the oxygen supply for the long-term investment case.

6) Shareholder register updates: JPMorgan major-holdings notification (10 Dec)

On 10 December 2025, SSE published a TR‑1 notification relating to JPMorgan Chase & Co., indicating a threshold event on 8 December 2025 and showing that the “resulting situation” was below the minimum threshold for notifiable voting rights. ^[14]

This is typically “market plumbing” rather than strategy—but in a momentum-heavy tape, investors sometimes watch these filings for signs of large-holder repositioning.

What analysts and forecasters are saying about SSE

Broker sentiment around SSE has been active heading into mid‑December.

Jefferies: “buy” reiterated, target raised

A widely-circulated broker note reported by Investing.com says Jefferies reiterated a “buy” on SSE and raised its price target to 2,510p, calling SSE its preferred integrated utility (in that comparative context). ^[15]

Consensus snapshots (useful, but treat as aggregations)

Aggregator summaries (which compile multiple broker notes) point to a “Moderate Buy” type consensus with targets generally clustering in the low‑to‑mid 2,300–2,400p area, while highlighting a wide bull/bear spread (with some low targets around 1,997p also cited in aggregation). ^[16]

These numbers should be read as sentiment thermometers, not laws of physics. But the direction is clear: after SSE’s strong run and big capex narrative, analysts are now arguing over how much upside is left versus how much execution and regulatory optimism is already priced in.

The week ahead: what could move SSE (15–19 December 2025)

SSE is a UK utility with meaningful rate sensitivity—so next week’s macro calendar matters almost as much as company-specific headlines.

1) UK inflation data: Wednesday, 17 December

The UK’s Consumer Price Inflation release for November 2025 is scheduled for 17 December 2025 (07:00) per the ONS release calendar. ^[17]

Why SSE traders care: utilities often trade like long-duration assets. If inflation surprises higher (and yields rise), valuation multiples can compress. If inflation cools faster, rate-cut expectations can support defensives.

2) Bank of England decision: Thursday, 18 December

The Bank of England’s Monetary Policy Summary and minutes for December 2025 are scheduled for publication on 18 December 2025. ^[18]

Market expectation has leaned toward a cut: a Reuters poll reported expectations for a BoE cut on 18 December (context: weakening growth data and policy debate). ^[19]

Why it matters for SSE: changes in the risk-free curve (gilts) and expectations for the path of rates feed directly into discount rates used for regulated utilities—and can shift sector leadership inside the FTSE quickly.

3) “Grid narrative” continuation risk

Even without a new SSE RNS, the market may continue digesting Ofgem’s RIIO-3 framing and the “superhighways” timing reset. That can spill into peer comps (National Grid, Centrica exposure via different channels, renewables developers) and affect SSE via relative-value flows. ^[20]

A practical read-through: bull case vs bear case (near-term)

Reasons bulls may stay constructive

Clear political and regulatory focus on accelerating grid build-out, with Ofgem explicitly framing massive investment programs and consumer outcomes. ^[21]
SSE strengthening its funding toolkit (updated Sustainability Financing Framework) while it scales capex. ^[22]
Supportive broker tone in parts of the Street, including Jefferies’ raised target. ^[23]

Reasons bears may stay cautious

Long-dated delivery timetables (2033–2034 targets for major links) create a long runway for cost overruns, planning friction, and supply-chain pressure—especially for HVDC infrastructure. ^[24]
Rate volatility risk: if inflation or the BoE message pushes yields up again, defensives can de-rate fast. ^[25]
Scrip uptake is usually not a “crisis,” but it does highlight the constant trade-off between shareholder distributions and funding a giant build program (and it can marginally increase share count). ^[26]

Bottom line for SSE stock into Monday’s open

As of 14 December 2025, SSE’s share price narrative is being driven by regulatory momentum and capital allocation credibility, with next week’s inflation and Bank of England decision acting as the most obvious market-wide catalysts.

If markets get a dovish BoE and a benign inflation print, SSE and other UK utilities can look deceptively “easy” again. If rates reprice higher, SSE may still be fundamentally fine—but the share price can get grumpy in the short term, because discount rates are the invisible hand that never stops fiddling with utility valuations.