Octopus acquires 500 MW/1 GWh battery project in Australia

Octopus Investments Australia, a subsidiary of UK-based Octopus Group, has purchased the largest battery installation in the Australian state of Queensland – the 500 MW/1 GWh Blackstone project – just outside of Brisbane.

October 4, 2023 Bella Peacock

Image: Frim Power

From pv magazine Australia

Octopus Investments Australia has purchased the 500 MW/1 GWh Blackstone big battery project from its initial developer, Firm Power.

The installation has been proposed for a site in Swanbank, about 40 kilometers from Brisbane, Queensland. It is still very much in the development stages and is only expected to reach a final investment decision in the second half of 2025. Octopus Investments Australia still needs to organize connection agreements with Powerlink, in addition to securing offtake, according to the Australian Financial Review.

Octopus Investments Australia acquired the battery project using capital from its OASIS fund, a platform it set up in 2022 for institutional investors. The OASIS investment platform has raised AUD 550 million ($346 million) over the last year, attracting backing from superannuation giants Hostplus and Rest Super, as well as Clean Energy Finance Corp. (CEFC).

Octopus Investments Australia has had a busy year, acquiring the 175 MW Ardandra project, which sits adjacent to its existing 180 MW Dulacca Wind Farm, both of which are in Queensland. In May, Octopus Investments Australia also acquired a 400 MW Hay Plains wind project in southwestern New South Wales.

Earlier this year, Octopus Investments Australia revealed plans to fold two proposed hybrid installations into its OASIS and OREO investment platforms. They are the 80 MW Fulham solar project in southeastern Victoria, featuring a 120 MWh battery, and the 350 MW Blind Creek agrisolar project in New South Wales, with a 300 MW/600 MWh battery.

Desert Springs Octopus, a majority Indigenous-owned company backed by Octopus Investments Australia, also signed a series of agreements with First Nations groups from Darwin and Katherine in August. Octopus Investments Australia will work with the groups to develop a number of renewable projects in the Northern Territory.

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