$324M refinancing for GRID’s 1GW UK battery portfolio, aims to expand battery capacity at existing sites

Gresham House Energy Storage Fund has secured a $324 million (£240 million) refinancing package from a five-bank consortium to expand its 1 GW portfolio of battery storage assets across the UK. The company said the funding will finance augmentation works to ‘increase battery capacity across the operational sites’ and ‘unlock additional revenue streams’.

GRID operates 28 battery energy storage system sites in the UK and holds approximately 20 percent of all BESS assets in the country. The refinancing was led by NORD/LB alongside Santander, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, Rabobank, and Aviva. The refinancing replaces existing debt facilities with likely improved terms from a broader lender base, reducing financing costs and extending maturity profiles.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia, or CBA, brings international energy project finance expertise, having supported major battery projects including one of Australia’s first significant grid-forming battery systems.

GRID has secured protective agreements covering half its portfolio revenues through long-term floor agreements with Statkraft Markets and Markel Bermuda, announced just weeks ago, designed to mitigate market volatility. GRID expects $53 million (£42 million) in revenues due to improved dispatch rates in the balancing mechanism. It also previously signed a tolling agreement in 2024.

“These projects will play a vital role in accelerating the UK’s renewable energy transition, creating greater flexibility and stability for the National Grid,” said Pablo Cervo, associate director at NORD/LB.

Ben Guest, fund manager of Gresham House Energy Storage Fund, said: “This refinancing, underpinned by long-term floor agreements, enables us to execute on our exciting growth plans whilst repositioning the business as lower risk.”