Federation Asset Management, Igneo Infrastructure Partners, Infratil's Mint Renewables and Palisade Investment Partners are among those considering bidding for Edify Energy's 185 MW/370 MWh Koorangie Battery project in Victoria, said three sources familiar.
Indicative bids are due at the end of next week, one of them added.
Sydney-based boutique ICA Partners is managing the sale for Edify, as previously reported. ICA sought expressions of interest from potential bidders last month.
Binding offers should be submitted in August and the sale is expected to reach financial close in September, according to the indicative timetable laid out in the teaser for the sale, codenamed Project Henry.
The company has already agreed a 15-year inflation-linked, flat fee tolling arrangement with an investment grade counterparty, which will have full operational rights over the BESS.
This is supported by a 20-year inflation-linked, fixed-fee, network support agreement with AEMO Services, according to the teaser.
The project will be funded with equity provided by the new investor and senior debt, according to the marketing document, which states that financial close for both debt and equity should happen at the same time. Edify plans to reveal the identity of the offtaker during the next phase of the sale.
Sources said the proposed deal is very similar to Edify's previous sale of the 150 MW/300 MWh Riverina and Darlington Point Battery Energy Storage Systems to Federation Asset Management.
Construction of Riverina was completed in May.
ICA also advised on that sale and helped arrange a bank facility, which included Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Westpac and DNB.
Edify had been seeking a five-year mini-perm financing with a 15-year notional amortisation for the Riverina batteries. Sources previously told Infralogic this was a common enough structure for solar financings but new to batteries.
The 15-year notional amortisation schedule made the loan too risky for some banks, but it allowed Edify to borrow more and amortise less by the end of the loan's five-year life, compared to a shorter amortisation schedule.
Koorangie will use advanced grid-forming inverters with virtual synchronous generator capabilities to provide system strength.
A spokesperson at Infratil and officials at Federation and Palisade declined comment. Spokespeople and officials at Edify, ICA and Igneo did not respond to requests for comment.
