Insights

FRV reaches financial close on UK battery portfolio

Published 30 January, 2023
  • Fotowatio Renewable Ventures has completed the simultaneous financial close of the battery energy storage (BESS) projects of Contego and Clay Tye.
  • The transaction was carried out with Natixis CIB UK, the amount of the financing package reaching £61 million, closing on December 23rd
  • The transaction is a major milestone for FRV as these two projects are the largest project finance (on a combined basis) executed on two highly merchant battery (c.90%) projects in Europe to date.

 

London, January 30th 2023

Fotowatio Renewable Ventures, part of Abdul Latif Jameel Energy, and a world leader in the development of sustainable energy solutions, has completed the simultaneous financial close of the battery energy storage projects (BESS) of Contego and Clay Tye, located in West Sussex and Essex (both in the United Kingdom) respectively. The transaction was carried out with Natixis CIB UK under the project finance modality (reaching £61 million), with the debt financing representing, on a combined basis, more than 60% of the cost of the projects. As part of the financing package, FRV has also closed two Debt Service Reserve Facilities (one for each project) and a VAT facility.

The transaction is a major milestone for FRV as these two projects are the largest project finance executed on two highly merchant battery (c.90%) projects in Europe to date.

With an output of 99 MW, Clay Tye has a capacity of 198 MWh, using 52 Tesla Megapack lithium-ion batteries. Contego, meanwhile, uses 28 Tesla Megapack batteries and has an output of 34 MW and a capacity of 68 MWh. In total, FRV already has a pipeline of more than 5 GW of battery storage projects under development in the UK.

The financing of projects developed by FRV qualify as Green Loan under the Green Loan Principles developed by the Loan Market Association and in accordance with FRV’s corporate Green Financing Framework, which encompasses green bonds, project finance, green loans and any other financial tool applicable to projects, assets or groups of assets.

Batteries, operational excellence and FRV’s leadership in storage

During 2022 Contego and Holes Bay, two of FRV’s battery plants in the UK, have been the two best performing battery assets in the country according to the ranking prepared by the monitoring tool MODO Energy, demonstrating FRV’s success in the management of its battery assets, a reliable and safe partner to consolidate the future of renewable energies worldwide.

The financial close of these projects adds another milestone to our growth objective in the UK storage market, strengthening the sustainability of the business model in the long term and our leadership position in the market. FRV also has other assets in the UK market that are currently in different stages of execution.
David Menéndez
Managing Director of FRV UK

 

With this financial close, FRV moves closer to its goal of building a more sustainable future through the development of renewable projects that improve the efficiency of energy systems around the world.

 

One of the focuses of Natixis CIB strategy is to finance the energy transition and increase our Green Loan origination, while supporting our core clients. BESS are a requirement to be able to reach the UK decarbonization objectives, as they will allow further penetration of renewable energy in the UK energy mix while partially addressing the structural imbalances in the UK grid. This transaction is an example of innovative financing structured by Natixis adjusted to BESS business model and it’s another illustration of our close collaboration with FRV, an international leader in sustainable energy production as well as a proven successful BESS manager. We are keen to support this growing BESS sector, with an initial focus on the UK, Australia, the US and Europe.
Pascal Soldaini
Managing Director and Head of the Infrastructure & Energy Finance at Natixis CIB UK

 

Reaching this financial close marks another milestone in our commitment to developing the UK’s renewable energy sector and supporting the realization of the country’s ambitions towards reaching net zero emissions by 2050. This significant achievement further promotes our position as a trusted partner that is leading the sector’s transformation around the world, while we make impressive progress in expanding our portfolio of BESS projects in the UK and globally.
Fady Jameel
Deputy President and Vice Chairman, Abdul Latif Jameel said