UK-based energy company Statera Energy has received £300m ($376.82m) of debt financing from a syndicate led by Lloyds Bank to develop a BESS and flexible generation project in Thurrock, UK.
Lloyds Bank was the sole structuring bank in the debt deal, with participation from NatWest, Santander and Siemens Financial Services through Siemens Bank.
The first £144m phase of the debt will help build the 300MW/600MWh Thurrock BESS project that is capable of two hours of discharge.
It will offer a significant boost to the UK’s flexible storage capacity.
The remaining £156m of the debt will be used to develop a flexible generation plant with 270MW of capacity powered by gas reciprocating engines.
The BESS and flexible generation projects will begin operations in late 2026.
The UK Government classified the BESS project as a nationally significant infrastructure project that will become one of the largest in the UK and Europe.
In February 2023, the company won the capacity market auction, securing 150MW of battery storage and 270MW of flexible generation at a price of £63 per kilowatt.
Following an alliance between Statera and Norwegian state-owned energy producer Statkraft to develop more than 1GW of contracted capacity, Statkraft offered a long-term revenue floor to support the deal's financing.
Statera Energy CEO and founder Tom Vernon said: “Lloyds’ commitment to Statera, through one of the largest battery storage debt financing deals in the UK to date, is a testament to the quality of our projects. Our Thurrock BESS project is strategically located near to Greater London, providing further energy system resilience to this key demand centre.
“System flexibility in the form of energy storage technologies is a crucial part of achieving energy security, decarbonising our power system and enabling the UK’s transition towards net zero. We are delighted to have worked with Lloyds, the syndicate of lenders and Statkraft in achieving this significant milestone.”
In November 2023, Swedish equity investor EQT signed an agreement to acquire Statera from InfraRed Capital Partners.
Media sources reported that the deal valued the company at more than £500m.
Statera has a pipeline of more than 16GW, of which 7.5GW could be operational by 2030. The company expects the acquisition to unlock the next phase of its growth.
