NextEnergy UK has acquired a 107MW/151MWh portfolio of standalone battery energy storage system (BESS) projects in the UK.
The portfolio consists of three projects in southeast England: Maldon (40MW/40MWh), which is in commercial operation; and Loudwater (39MW/55MWh) and Basildon (28MW/56MWh), at which commissioning work has been completed. All three projects have Capacity Market (CM) contracts and “established routes to market”, according to NextEnergy UK.
The deal reflects a shift towards investments in the battery sector from NextEnergy Capital, which manages the NextEnergy Group’s investment activities through a number of funds. NextEnergy UK is the group’s UK-based investment vehicle, and was launched in 2021 with an initial investment target of £500 million for the UK solar PV and BESS sectors.
In March, a separate fund, the NextEnergy Solar Fund, which is listed on the LSE and for which NextEnergy Capital is an investment adviser and manger, sold a 100MW solar PV portfolio to Atrato Onsite Energy for £46.2 million, and announced that it would aim to expand the contribution of energy storage projects to its gross asset value to 30%.
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Last week, the NextEnergy Group’s development arm, Starlight Energy, announced that it had secured planning consent for a 240MW/960MWh BESS in Durham as it looks to expand its operational BESS portfolio.
Indeed, NextEnergy UK’s acquisition of the Loudwater and Basildon projects comes just eight days after they completed commissioning work. The projects were originally owned by UK-based Eku Energy and developed by Italy-headquartered NHOA Energy.
Prior to the sale of the projects to NextEnergy UK, Eku Energy noted that NHOA Energy would continue to provide operations and maintenance services for both the Loudwater and Basildon projects; Energy-Storage.news has asked NextEnergy UK if it plans to continue this arrangement.
“BESS will play a critical role in supporting the UK’s Clean Power ambitions by providing the flexibility needed to integrate increasing levels of renewable generation onto the electricity system,” said NextEnergy Capital CIO Ross Grier, making reference to the government’s energy transition targets for the end of the decade, which our colleagues at Solar Power Portal heard would be challenging to achieve at its Clean Power 2030 Summit hosted in June.
“This operational portfolio is well positioned to provide immediate cash generation while offering multiple opportunities for future value creation,” added Grier.
