On March 12, 2009, Standard&Poor's Ratings Services raised to 'A-' from 'BBB+' its underlying debt rating on the £166 million £5.396% senior secured bonds due 2036 issued by U.K.-based special-purpose vehicle Exchequer Partnership (No. 2) PLC (EP2). The outlook on the underlying rating is stable. The insured 'AAA' long-term debt rating on the bonds reflects the unconditional and irrevocable guarantee provided by Financial Security Assurance (U.K.) Ltd. (FSA; local currency AAA/Watch Neg/--) of payment of scheduled interest and principal on the bonds. The upgrade reflects the relatively low risk in the project's operations as demonstrated by the fact that no unavailability deductions and only negligible performance deductions have been incurred in the period since full operations started in
