Equitix and UKIB Announce Partnership

Equitix is pleased to announce news of our partnership with the UK Infrastructure Bank to invest in UK electricity storage projects.

With the UK’s legally binding commitment to achieve net zero emissions by 2050, the Government has put plans in place to significantly expand the UK’s production of renewable energy, predominately via additional wind and solar power capacity over the upcoming 10-15 years. However, these power sources are intermittent, giving rise to the need for significant electricity storage capacity, which can match the timing of power supply with demand, and also assist in balancing and providing stability to the UK’s electricity grid.

The UK is currently the European leader in utility-scale battery storage installations and is forecast to remain so over the course of this decade based on projects under construction and in planning.

With over £10 billion in AUM and over 300 infrastructure professionals, we manage an extensive asset portfolio across the UK electricity value-chain.   We believe that this provides us with important insights into novel electricity storage project opportunities addressing the more acute constraints within the UK electricity network, as well as a strategic partner network that can help deliver these projects.

The UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) opened for business in June 2021 to help tackle climate change and boost growth across the United Kingdom. The Bank is wholly owned and funded by the HM Treasury but is operationally independent from government.

Equitix and the UKIB are partnering together to pursue a highly differentiated investment strategy and pipeline of UK electricity storage projects, involving large scale projects, as well as new project configurations and commercial frameworks designed to address pinch points in the UK electricity system. The partnership will in due course also look to deploy longer-duration technologies and/or electricity storage technologies with superior discharge rates and degradation levels. Additionally, the partnership will seek to construct and manage its assets in a highly sustainable manner, including with respect to supply-chain, local job and skills creation, and responsible end-of-life decommissioning and/or asset recycling.

Hugh Crossley, Chief Executive Officer of Equitix, said: “We are delighted to partner with the UK Infrastructure Bank on this important initiative, investing in the development of critical energy infrastructure and supporting the UK Government’s net zero targets and energy security objectives.  This firmly aligns with our own strategic objectives and offers attractive opportunities for like-minded investors.”

We look forward in due course to announcing more news related to specific investments made as part of this important partnership with the UKIB.