Catalyst Capital has acquired a development site in the UK as part of a new strategy to invest £300m (€359m) in battery storage.
The European real assets investor will develop a 100MW battery-storage facility at a former power-station site next to the M1 motorway in Yorkshire.
Catalyst Energy Storage Platform (CESP), headed by Catalyst investment director John Parsons, has acquired the leasehold interest in the brownfield site of the former Skelton Grange power station, south east of Leeds, from Referent, a renewable energy developer.
The site is part of a regional hub for renewable energy and is adjacent to a 19.5-acre waste-to-energy facility under construction.
Planning permission was granted last year for a 100MW battery storage facility. The construction tendering process is being managed by CESP‘s engineering adviser, Fitchner, with the intention that the site will be operational by the end of 2022.
The site is one of a series that will be acquired by Catalyst Capital as part of a £300m UK battery-storage strategy.
The investment follows a joint venture acquisition last year with Dowling in Nursling, Southampton, of a 50MW facility which is expected to be operational in February.
Catalyst Capital is in talks with investors to jointly fund the expansion of the battery storage platform.
Kean Hird, partner of Catalyst Capital, said: “John and his team have been researching this sector for some time and we believe there is a compelling opportunity to deliver a portfolio of UK battery storage facilities.
“This portfolio will give our investors the opportunity to invest into a scalable market with high ESG credentials in the renewables sector.
“Although the sector is still in evolution, it is quickly gaining institutional status, while delivering very healthy cash-on-cash returns in the interim”.
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