Foresight Group preps $248m offer for Harmony’s British batteries

London-based renewables investment manager Foresight group plc has indicated an intent to make a GBP 191 million ($248 million) offer for English BESS developer Harmony Energy Income Trust plc.

Foresight yesterday announced it had received the backing of the Harmony board for a potential offer of GBP 0.84 per share for Harmony’s stock.

The clean energy investor now has until April 14 to “put up or shut up” by making a firm offer for the stock. An offer by the Harmony board to secure 12.04% of shareholder votes in favor of the proposed takeover will lapse if Foresight’s firm offer does not materialize by March 31.

Details of the potential offer, published on the London Stock Exchange’s RNS news service, indicate Foresight has experience of operating BESS in Great Britain and wants to acquire Harmony’s eight British BESS, which have a total capacity of 395.4 MW/790.8 MWh.

Harmony Energy Income Trust – which floated on the London exchange in November 2021, backed by a seed portfolio of five BESS from parent Harmony Energy Ltd – announced its intent to sell off its assets in late May 2024.

The seven English BESS listed on the Harmony website comprise a 99 MW/198 MWh site in Surrey; a 98 MW/196 MWh battery in Cottingham, East Yorkshire; a 49.9 MW/99.8 MWh facility in County Durham; a 35 MW/70 MWh project in Drax, North Yorkshire; a 33 MW/66 MW BESS in Wormald Green, Yorkshire; a 20 MW/40 MWh location in Farnham, Surrey; and an 11 MW/22 MWh site in Broadditch, Kent. The British portfolio is completed by a 49.5 MW/99 MW project in Lochgelly, in the Scottish historic county of Fife.

News of the possible takeover comes days after Harmony Energy Poland announced it had sold a 200 MW/400 MWh battery in the Eastern European country, to the local clean energy business of French state-owned energy giant EDF.

Indicating the proceeds of that sale would be reinvested in Polish energy storage, Michał Maćkowiak, executive director of Harmony Energy Poland, said, “We have ambitious plans for Poland and this deal puts us in a strong position to develop, own, and operate a significant portfolio in the country. Poland’s energy system is evolving rapidly, with growing demand for flexible [energy] storage solutions to balance its increasing share of renewables and decreasing share of coal-fired assets. This acquisition highlights the rising importance of high-quality battery storage projects, which are critical for enabling home-grown clean energy and reducing reliance on fossil fuels.

“This success gives us the resources and momentum to drive forward future developments, expanding our pipeline and ensuring we continue to deliver projects that support Poland’s transition to a cleaner, more resilient energy system.”

JLL Energy and Infrastructure advised on the sale of the Polish BESS.