Our Investments

Managing Shetland Charitable Trust's investments on behalf of the people of Shetland is crucial to the trust's long-term future. Our approach helps generate income which is then distributed to trusts, charitable and voluntary organisations in Shetland.

The Trust’s capital has been invested in two main areas:

External Investments - Shares and other securities quoted on the world's Stock Exchange
Local Investments - Subsidiary Companies

External Investments

The majority of the Trust's assets are invested on the world markets. As at 31 March 2026, four fund managers manage the Trust's external investment portfolio valued at £437.4 m. The funds are invested in the following Fund Managers::

Blackrock Global Investors
Baillie Gifford & Co.
Schroders Real Estate Investment Management
Partners Group
JP Morgan Asset Management

Local Investments

The Trust's assets are also invested in several subsidiary companies - information on each of these is outlined here.

Shetland Heat Energy and Power Limited

Shetland Heat Energy and Power Limited (SHEAP), is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Trust, set up to operate the Lerwick District Heating Scheme.

SCT Renewables Ltd

SCT Renewables Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Trust. It holds the Trust’s investment in Viking Energy Shetland LLP (VES LLP) which has an interest in the Viking Wind Farm. VES LLP is 90% owned by the Trust with the remaining 10% being owned by Viking Wind Limited.

C.T. Shetland (T.M.) Limited

C.T. Shetland (T.M.) Limited is not a trading company and only holds the knitwear trademark known as the ‘Shetland Lady’.

Sullom Voe Oil Terminal

The trust owns the land at Sullom Voe and receives rental payments.

Decisions about Investments

When the trustees make decisions about investing the Trust’s capital, the law requires them to seek appropriate advice and act within reason as prudently as commercial investors would.

Testimonials

The funding COPE Ltd receives from the Shetland Charitable Trust supports us in many ways. It allows us to develop and maintain a strong foundation to our core business and assists us to provide on-going employment skill development opportunities to people with disabilities living within Shetland. COPE Ltd highly values the support provided to our organisation by The Shetland Charitable Trust.

“The substantial grant made to us by Shetland Charitable Trust every year allows us to provide first-class facilities and dedicated staff to underpin sporting success among people of all ages and abilities in the islands.”

Having this core funding from the Charitable Trust means that we can use that money where we need it at any given time. It's multi-year funding which really takes the pressure off. To have the funding to keep going is really important as it is improving the lives of disabled folk in Shetland.

The funding that we get from the Charitable Trust pays for part of staff support and matching with other funders. Without local funders we wouldn't have national funders, and without either of those funders, we wouldn't be able to do this, so funding from the Shetland Charitable Trust is incredibly important.

The funding Shetland Arts gets from Shetland Charitable Trust is about making sure the organisation can thrive, access other funds, and deliver on behalf of the community of Shetland. Our funding from the Shetland Charitable Trust really helps us with our conversations with national funders because it shows that we're working on behalf of what the local objectives and priorities are.

The Access to Leisure scheme was introduced to allow folk to be able to get access to classes and activities for a lower cost. I feel that the SRT play a critical role in every community across Shetland and that's all down to the funding of the Shetland Charitable Trust that we're able to maintain that.

Unpaid carers do an amazing job looking after people 24/7 in their own homes, keeping them living at home safely, and they really need help to do that. Thanks to the funding from Shetland Charitable Trust, we've been able to employ a deputy manager, recruit more care attendants, and provide overnights. We're also really grateful for the funding because it means that everybody can get the service for free.