Independent power producer (IPP) Econergy Group, through its UK arm, has successfully signed a financing agreement and route-to-market agreement with Goldman Sachs to support a battery energy storage (BESS) project in Yorkshire.
The Swangate BESS will have an installed capacity of 50MW/102MWh and is expected to connect to the electricity grid by the end of this year.
Goldman Sachs International Bank has provided financing for €32 million (£27 million). The loan structure supports both project development and operational needs: about £25 million has been earmarked for construction costs and to repay existing shareholder loans.
Close to the first withdrawal date, a hedging agreement to manage interest rate fluctuations will be put in place. Separately, the route-to-market agreement covers the trading and optimisation of the project.
Econergy’s UK portfolio currently totals 18 solar PV projects with a combined generational capacity of about 1.5GW and 26 energy storage projects, including stand-alone and co-located, with a total capacity around 6.8GWh.
In late 2022, Econergy scored its first engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) agreement for the Swangate Project. The EPC agreement was made between Econergy, UK & Ireland contracting company G2 energy and Trina Storage, a business unit of Trina Solar.
“Econergy Group remains committed to advancing renewable energy solutions across Europe and invites strategic partners to explore further collaborative opportunities as we drive forward our ambitious project portfolio”, said Eyal Podhorzer, CEO at Econergy.
“We look forward to continuing our successful partnerships and exploring new collaboration paths in the renewable energy sector.”
Earlier this year, Econergy agreed to £128 million (€150 million) in debt financing from Rivage Investment to advance the former’s pipeline of European solar PV projects.
The funding supports ongoing development and construction in Econergy’s primary target renewable energy markets of Italy, Poland, the UK, and Romania. The investment came as Econergy also bought out UBS’s share of its joint-developed Italian renewable projects. This means that, once fully operational, Econergy will take full ownership of approximately 440MW worth of projects.
At the time, Podhorzer stated that 2024 would be a “big year” for the company as it continues to grow and transform.
