Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners (CIP) has agreed to sell its entire stake in the 240MW/960MWh Summerfield battery energy storage system (BESS) in South Australia to Palisade Investment Partners.
This marks the Danish institutional investor’s exit from one of South Australia’s largest battery storage projects just months before it is set to enter commercial operation.
The transaction, announced yesterday (13 April), sees CIP divest its 100% ownership interest in the late-stage construction project through its Copenhagen Infrastructure V fund to Palisade’s Australian renewable energy platform, Intera Renewables.
Construction of the lithium-ion (Li-ion) battery storage system is now materially complete, with energisation expected in May 2026 and commercial operations scheduled for late 2026.
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Located near Adelaide in South Australia’s Murraylands region, Summerfield is positioned close to existing transmission infrastructure and will provide 4-hour duration storage capacity.
The project has been developed with a 10-year offtake agreement with ASX-listed utility Origin Energy, providing revenue certainty as the asset transitions to operational status.
Thomas Wibe Poulsen, partner and APAC lead at CIP, said the firm had successfully de-risked the large-scale battery project throughout development and construction, demonstrating its ability to manage risk and deliver value to investors.
“The Summerfield project clearly illustrates CIP’s capability to deliver through each stage of a project’s lifecycle, having successfully delivered all key development workstreams and with construction now substantially complete,” Poulsen said.
The sale follows CIP’s engagement of Azure Capital to seek buyers for the asset, with the Danish investor reportedly seeking bids for up to 100% of the project.
CIP originally acquired Summerfield in 2022 and delivered all key development workstreams across offtake, procurement and grid connection before reaching the final investment decision in September 2024.
The project’s capacity was doubled from an initially announced 240MW/480MWh in November 2023 to its current 960MWh configuration by the time construction began.
Strategic acquisition for Palisade’s energy storage portfolio
For Palisade, the acquisition represents its second investment in large-scale energy storage.
Simon Parbery, partner at Palisade, said the Summerfield BESS provides both attractive risk-adjusted returns to investors and long-term strategic value to the Intera Renewables platform.
Intera Renewables, established by Palisade in March 2023, aggregates operational renewable energy assets into a single entity with a combined ownership, governance, and management structure.
The platform is the principal investment of Palisade’s Renewable Energy Fund, which holds a 50% ownership interest alongside Palisade’s Diversified Infrastructure Fund, the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC), Aware Super and HESTA.
With the inclusion of Summerfield, Palisade’s renewable energy portfolio totals approximately 2.5GW on a 100% ownership basis, including 2.2GW in Australia.
Palisade’s first large-scale energy storage investment was the 500MWh Limestone Coast North BESS project, also in South Australia. The project was acquired in February 2025 in a deal worth AU$460 million (US$326 million).
The addition of Summerfield to Intera’s portfolio, which previously comprised wind and solar assets including Hallett 1 Wind Farm, Snowtown 2 Wind Farm, Granville Harbour Wind Farm, Macarthur Wind Farm and Ross River Solar Farm, marks a deeper expansion into battery storage.
Blue Power Partners will be retained to manage construction through to commercial operations, after which Palisade Integrated Management Services will carry out asset management activities.
Once operational, Summerfield will support South Australia’s grid stability and energy storage needs as the state pursues its target of 100% net renewable energy by 2027. The system will charge with surplus renewable energy during off-peak times and inject power into the grid when demand peaks, supporting electricity networks in South Australia and neighbouring Victoria.
South Australia has emerged as a leader in battery energy storage deployment, with the state home to several large-scale systems, including Neoen’s Hornsdale Power Reserve, which at 150MW/194MWh was the world’s first ‘big battery’.
Recent analysis has shown South Australian battery storage systems leading revenue performance across Australia’s National Electricity Market (NEM) during periods of high demand and grid stability events.
The Summerfield project was originally announced in November 2023 as CIP’s first battery energy storage project in Australia, with the Danish investor selecting Canadian Solar’s e-STORAGE as the preferred major contractor to deliver the system.
Interested in Australia? Read Energy-Storage.news’ Energy Storage Summit Australia coverage and related content.
