First close for $1bn Infradebt storage fund

Fund manager Infradebt has confirmed the first close of the Infradebt Energy Transition Fund (ETF), which is dedicated to financing grid scale battery projects in Australia.

Infradebt has not officially disclosed the size of the fund, but it is believed to be in the region of A$750 million to A$1 billion.

Initial investors include capital from Grok Ventures, the JANA Diversified Infrastructure Trust as well as a number of existing family office clients of Infradebt.

The fund will provide senior debt finance to six to eight battery projects with a total capacity of 1.5-2GW in the coming years.

The ETF’s first two investments are loans to the Neoen Capital Battery and Genex’s Bouldercombe battery energy storage system. The Neoen Capital Battery is a 100MW/200MWh battery project located on the outskirts of Canberra. Infradebt has provided a senior debt facility alongside the Clean Energy Finance Corporation. The Genex Bouldercombe storage system is a 50MW/100MWh project located approximately 20km southwest of Rockhampton in Queensland. Both projects are currently under construction and are expected to begin operations in 2023. Infradebt managed funds are the sole financer for the Bouldercombe BESS.

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