HMC Capital says it has “committed equity” in place to develop its $A800 million flagship big battery project, a 300 megawatt and four-hour facility proposed for Victoria, and has another 2 gigawatts of near-term renewables and storage projects targeted for final investment decision.
In its results announcement for the 2025-26 financial year, the fund said its energy transition platform, Illuma Energy, was humming along nicely since its 2024 launch, with $A1.5 billion invested across wind, solar, and storage and a roughly $10 billion development pipeline of around 5 gigawatts (GW) across 19 projects.
Illuma got a major boost on June 30, when HMC sealed a strategic partnership with global investment giant KKR that delivered a $603 million injection of funds, including an initial $355 million at financial close and up to $248 million towards the first Battery Energy Storage System (BESS).
HMC Capital COO Victoria Hardie said on Wednesday that the $248 million capital commitment will fund up to 90 per cent of the equity component of the platform’s first battery project, which is expected – but not confirmed – to be the 300 megawatt (MW) and 1,200 megawatt-hour (MWh) Moorabool BESS.
“In energy, we have committed equity for our first BESS project, with around 2 GW of further developments moving towards FID over the next couple of years,” Hardie said.
