French independent power producer (IPP) Neoen has agreed to sell its operational and development projects in Victoria, Australia, including the 350MW/450MWh Victorian Big Battery, for AU$950 million (US$610 million).
The Victoria portfolio has been sold to ASX-listed alternative asset manager HMC Capital in a move to comply with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), which objected to Canadian asset manager Brookfield’s proposed takeover of Neoen.
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The French IPP is set to be acquired by Canadian asset manager Brookfield in a deal worth €6.1 billion (US$6.7 billion). However, to comply with Australian market regulations, Neoen was ordered to divest its Victoria assets to prevent the company from holding a “monopoly” over energy network assets in the state. This was due to Brookfield’s ownership over AusNet, which owns and operates most of Victoria’s electricity transmission network and parts of the electricity distribution network.
HMC Capital will secure Neoen’s 652MW operating portfolio, consisting of the 224MW Bulgana Green Power Hub, which includes a 20MW/34MWh battery energy storage system(BESS), the 128MW Numurkah Solar Farm, and the Victorian Big Battery.
Neoen’s 2.8GW development, including over 1.5GW and 1.3GW of BESS, will also be sold to HMC Capital. One of these development projects includes the second stage of the Victorian Big Battery, called the Moorabool BESS, which intends to add an additional 300MW/450MWh system to the project.
It also includes the Bulgana Battery Extension, the Kentbruck Battery, the Kentbruck Green Power Hub, the Loy Yang Wind Farm and the Navarre Green Power Hub.
Neoen remains committed to 10GW of Australian renewable energy and storage assets by 2030 target
Xavier Barbaro, Neoen’s chairman and CEO, highlighted that the divestment of Neoen’s Victorian portfolio was necessary for the Brookfield takeover and that the company remains committed to achieving its 10GW in Australia by 2030 target.
“This divestment is a necessary step for Neoen to begin a new chapter under Brookfield’s ownership. We remain fully committed to Australia, which is our largest country, and we look forward to benefiting from Brookfield’s support as we seek to further accelerate the energy transition in Australia and around the world,” Barbaro said.
Brookfield also holds a stake in Spanish sustainable energy developer X-Elio, which operates in the Australian solar PV and energy storage market.
Once this transaction has been completed, the ACCC is expected not to oppose Brookfield’s acquisition of Neoen. Brookfield will take a 53.12% majority stake in Neoen at €39.85 (US$42.6) per share from investors Impala and Fonds Stratégique de Participations, an investment vehicle owned by seven French insurance companies, amongst others.
