Faster and cheaper: Wollemi Capital bets big on the power of small solar and batteries

Specialist climate investor Wollemi Capital has finalised its acquisition of MPower, the ASX-listed renewables developer that has cornered the market in the rapid-fire rollout of small-scale solar and battery projects.

MPower Group agreed earlier this year to sell its renewables business to Wollemi for $19 million, after Wollemi committed to tip more than $100 million into MPower “growth ambitions” for its project pipeline.

MPower has established itself in Australia as a nimble developer of mostly 5 megawatt solar farms, based on the theory that building lots of small projects is quicker, easier and perhaps even better suited to the evolving needs of a rapidly transitioning grid than building projects sized at hundreds of megawatts.

In late 2021, MPower flagged plans to add batteries across its pipeline of up to (at that time) 20 small solar projects, after a grid connected battery trial with Endeavour Energy was deemed a success.

Wollemi says MPower will join the group’s growing portfolio of climate infrastructure assets, “with a clear mandate to accelerate delivery of reliable, affordable, and decentralised energy projects across Australia.”

Matt Kean, the former energy minister and treasurer of New South Wales, and now a director at Wollemi Capital and chair of the Climate Change Authority, shares MPower’s belief that there is a strong market for small solar and battery projects, particularly in light of long-delayed grid upgrades.

“We can’t afford to wait on big transmission builds,” Kean said in a statement. “Distributed renewables assets like MPower’s are faster to deploy and critical to reaching Australia’s energy targets.”

Wollemi co-founder and co-CEO Paul Hunyor – who has been appointed chair of MPower to guide its next phase of growth – says the company is a proven operator with a smart, executable strategy.

“[MPower is] well placed to scale up capital deployment and become a major owner-operator of distributed energy,” Hunyor said on Tuesday.

“Whether behind the meter or connected to the grid, distributed energy infrastructure will play a big role in delivering cleaner, more resilient electricity for Australian energy consumers.”

MPower chief, Nathan Wise says it has been challenging for the company to secure project funding at the scale needed to take full advantage of the opportunity it has identified.

“Wollemi’s strategic alignment, growth focus and energy transition expertise make it uniquely positioned to create future value by combining its investment expertise and financial resources with the skills, assets and opportunity that the MPower business brings,” Wise said.

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