Macquarie’s Eku wins massive Canberra big battery mandate in innovative funding

The ACT government has selected Macquarie Group’s newly formed global battery group Eku Energy to build one of the nation’s largest large batteries in the nation’s capital, featuring an innovative but secret financing agreement. increase.

ACT has already reached the equivalent of ‘100% net’ renewable energy through a series of long-term contracts with wind farms and solar plants, and is now powering electric vehicles and homes. to increase its share of renewable energy. Plenty of storage.

Big Canberra Battery sizes are 250MW and 500MWh, or 2 hours of storage. If built now, it would be the largest in the country, but by the time it is delivered in late 2025, it will beat other battery installations, including the massive 1690 MWh Waratah ‘super’ battery in New South Wales. You are likely to be defeated.

The new battery will be installed in Williamsdale with a focus on supporting the grid during network outages, especially during peak times, preventing blackouts and bridging the gap between wind and solar supplies.

Enough renewable energy can be stored to power a third of Canberra for two hours during peak demand.

The big battery deal is another coup for the newly formed Eku Energy, which just received FIRB approval last week, but other Macquarie and Green investment groups, including the large Hazelwood and Rangebank battery projects in Victoria. inherits the battery assets of

 

 

True to Macquarie’s style, Eku proposed an innovative financing arrangement with the ACT government for the battery.

Quarterly over 15 years to provide guaranteed returns that help reduce capital costs, rather than providing specific grid services like the contracts given to Victoria Big Battery, Waratah ‘Super’ Battery, etc. receive payments to

In return, Eku promised greater rewards to the ACT government in the long run by sharing the revenue from its business of selling batteries in the market.

Unlike the transparency that characterizes ACT’s long-term contracts with wind and solar farms, details of the quarterly payments for the new large batteries have not been released, and Prime Minister Andrew Barr said that the said it would remain confidential.

“This procurement will impact our future procurements, and (Ekenergy) and its future procurements, but in effect, yes, there is an earnings risk-sharing element here,” Burr said. But it should bring “net positive value” to the territory, he said.

The Big Canberra Battery is one of three large batteries in operation, under construction, or under construction at ACT. GPG’s 10MW/20MWh Queenbeyan battery is already in operation, and Neoen’s 100MW/200MWh Capital battery (pictured above) is nearing completion.

The Big Canberra Battery, expected to cost between $300 million and $400 million, will be developed, built and operated by Eku Energy, which beat out more than 40 parties in a bid conducted by the ACT government. Construction is expected to begin in late 2024 and be completed in 2025.

ACT intended to build a “network” of battery storage through tenders, but instead chose to install one large installation.

The announcement of the Big Canberra Battery means that ACT has already achieved its target of 250MW from its new Canberra Battery ‘ecosystem’, but it is important to note that it will go ahead and provide incentives for more batteries. is understood. Other small facilities.

“When we first announced the Big Canberra Battery project, we had three objectives in mind. Generating energy sources and improving Canberra’s energy security, this contract will achieve all three of these objectives.”

“As a combined network, this battery ecosystem will address network constraints, enable more Canberra residents to benefit from solar power, and create opportunities for the Northern Territory to reduce costs and generate revenue. can provide.

“ACT has been supplying 100% renewable electricity since 2020. Initiatives like this build on that success and focus on renewable energy that supports a robust, affordable and sustainable energy grid. It shows the viability of the energy.”

Daniel Burrows, Eku Energy’s Asia Pacific head and chief investment officer, said the company is accelerating the deployment of its battery assets in Australia, which is fully integrated into its global operations. I was.

“The Big Canberra Battery marks an important milestone for Eku Energy as it celebrates the delivery of its first GWh of battery energy storage in Australia,” he said in a statement.

“This will bring our global portfolio of battery energy storage assets to over 4GWh.” Eku has yet to select a battery provider for the Canberra project, and Burrows said the funding and revenue-sharing arrangements will extend to other battery storage. It states that it can be reproduced in the project as well.