Sun Cable Pty Ltd secured AUD 210 million (USD 152.3m/EUR 139.1m) in a capital raising among existing shareholders to back its development portfolio of power generation and transmission projects, and notably its flagship project for a huge subsea power link between Singapore and Australia.
The renewable energy company is behind the AUD-30-billion Australia-Asia PowerLink (AAPowerLink) project whose goal is to import electricity into Singapore from a solar park of between 17 GWp and 20 GWp to be built in Australia’s Northern Territory. The complex will have also 36 GWh to 42 GWh of energy storage capacity.
Sun Cable said on Monday that the fresh capital has been raised from a Series B round led by Grok Ventures, billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes’ private investment company, and Squadron Energy, owned by iron ore magnate Andrew Forrest’s Tattarang.
“This capital raise will enable the delivery of renewable solar power from Australia to Singapore, advance our other multi gigawatt scale projects, and support the progress of key facilitating assets,” said David Griffin, Sun Cable’s founder and CEO.
The expansive solar project’s 4,200-km undersea cable would transport massive amounts of solar electricity produced outside Tennant Creek to Darwin and other markets, including Singapore. As part of the $30 billion plan to create a massive solar farm in Northern Australia, Mike Cannon-Brookes and Andrew Forrest have reportedly contributed $210 million to the project, bringing the investment to roughly $250 million to build the project.
This investment by the two businessmen accelerates the company’s intentions to investigate similar factories in Australia and elsewhere. The NT solar project would consist of a 12,000-hectare solar precinct with 17-20 GW of solar power and 36-42 GWh of energy storage to allow 24/7 dispatchable electricity in Elliott, Northern Territory.
Sun Cable CEO David Griffin said that the money “will carry us all the way through to the financial closure of the Australia-Asia PowerLink, it will also enable us to speed the development of our larger portfolio”, as reported by the Guardian.
The company anticipates that the AAPowerLink project will generate up to $2 billion in annual exports, supporting more than 1,500 construction employment, 350 active jobs, and 12,000 indirect jobs.
The developed infrastructure will facilitate large-scale industrial development through the electrification of new and existing industries, provide significant supply chain opportunities and support regional decarbonisation.
Chairman of Tattarang, Dr Andrew Forrest, said “Sun Cable’s vision will transform Australia’s capability to become a world-leading generator and exporter of renewable electricity and enable decarbonisation.
Principal of Grok Ventures, Mike Cannon-Brookes, said, “This brings Australia one step closer to realising our renewables exporting potential.
“We can power the world with clean energy and Sun Cable is harnessing that at scale. It’s a blueprint for how we export energy across the world. We fully back this vision.”
Author: Editorial Staff
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