Independent power producer (IPP) Cero Generation and developer Enso Energy have reached financial close on a 360MW solar-plus-storage portfolio of projects in the UK.
The portfolio comprises three solar and battery energy storage systems (BESS) projects, one of which is the 115MW co-located Bramley Project, located in the southern English county of Hampshire. This project will be the first to be operational and is expected to begin construction in Autumn 2025.
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Companies have not shared how much of the 360MW corresponds to solar PV, however the Bramley Project is expected to have an installed solar PV capacity of 59MW, which will be provided by Chinese solar manufacturer LONGi. The company will supply its back contact (BC) Hi-MO 9 modules, making this the the first project to use BC technology in the UK, according to LONGi.
The BESS will be provided by Chinese solar and storage provider Sungrow, while French utility EDF will provide optimisation for the battery and route-to-market services for the solar PV. Greek developer Metlen has been appointed as the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contractor.
Structured as a green loan, the financing package comprises US$268 million (£200 million) and was raised through a consortium of lenders that includes ING, NordLB, Rabobank and Santander UK. To accommodate future projects, an accordion facility has been included in the financing of this solar-plus-storage portfolio.
“The UK urgently needs flexible, clean energy infrastructure, and this portfolio – totalling 360MW of co-located solar and storage – represents a major step forward,” said Bill Rees, managing director at Enso Energy.
The partnership between the Cero Generation and Enso Energy aims to build 1GW of solar and storage projects across England and Wales, and created a joint venture back in 2020 for this purpose. The companies connected the first solar-plus-storage facility in the UK transmission network last year when they started operations at the 49.5MW/99MWh BESS facility with the 70MW Larks Green solar plant.
