A major German asset manager Aquila Capital – with more than $14 billion under management and a sizeable renewable energy portfolio – has entered the Australian utility battery storage market by buying a portfolio of projects totalling 220MW and 440MWh.
The deal with Spanish company Grupo Gransolar is for three battery energy storage systems (BESS) projects in South Australia. Construction of the first project is expected to begin in 2023 and Gransolar’s energy storage arm E22 will continue to manage the projects for Aquila.
Aquila Capital CEO APAC Alexander Lenz declined to name which projects they’ve bought, but told RenewEconomy they are “evaluating several opportunities” to follow their first foray in Australia. He also declined to say whether this was the investor’s first deal in Australia.
“Our investment focus in Australia is on solar PV, wind and battery storage and to collaborate with partners that we can work with on a portfolio of projects over the long-term,” he said.
“Our company has a track record investing in, developing and operating these asset classes and in Asia Pacific, we have our own regional team of experts that can help bring these clean energy projects – whether greenfield or brownfield – to life.”
Aquila has been looking at Australian battery, wind and solar opportunities since it established an Asia vanguard in Singapore in 2020, while Gransolar has been active in Australia since 2017.
Gransolar is developing a total of 13 big battery projects in South Australia, NSW and Victoria with a total capacity of 300MW and mostly two hours storage, and earlier this year said it had “supercharged” its activities here following a major investment from international financier, Trilantic Europe, which took a 60% stake in the company.
In Australia, Gransolar has built more than 1GW of solar and battery storage, including the recently connected 200MW Blue Grass solar farm in Queensland.
Aquila Capital CEO APAC Alexander Lenz says the investor is looking for other renewable energy opportunities in Australia after establishing a foothold in the country, and wants to open a local office this year.
“In the clean energy mix, battery storage is crucial for system stability and efficiency, which makes them a key component of our investment and development strategy,” he said.
Australia is becoming a key region for battery storage investment globally.
Its purchase follows the move by global funds giant Blackrock to buy Melbourne-based Akaysha Energy and pledge $1 billion to roll out the first three of nine battery storage projects in Australia.
To date, Aquila Capital has only dipped its toes into battery storage anywhere in the world, with a project in Japan in 2016, the purchase of a 25MW/100MWh grid-scale battery energy storage system (BESS) in Belgium last year and a 51% stake in a portfolio of solar projects and energy storage in Italy in January.
The South Australia deal marks its first Southern Hemisphere venture.
Globally, Gransolar has a solar focus having completed more than 100 solar farms in 17 countries, but moved into battery storage to complement those operations.
Aquila has a more broad investment mandate with 7,785MWp (megawatt peak) of solar, 864 MW of hydropower, and 3,537 MW of wind power installed or under development around the world.
See also RenewEconomy’s Big Battery Storage Map of Australia
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