SUSI Partners, through the SUSI Energy Transition Fund (“SETF”), has expanded the scope of its Italian solar PV development platform ReFeel New Energy (“RNE”) to include the development of battery energy storage systems (“BESS”). Since the expansion in September 2022, RNE has outpaced its initial targets and today has over 750 MW of BESS capacity under development, of which 200 MW are awaiting final authorisation to then move into construction.
RNE, which was set up in early 2022 as a solar PV development platform within SETF, is led and co-owned by a highly experienced local management team with a 15-year track record as founders and managers of clean energy company ReFeel. Based on the strong growth of the broader RNE team and the on-target progress of the solar PV business, with currently over 375 MW under development, of which two projects are ready to be built, SUSI and RNE decided to expand into the emerging Italian battery storage market. A little more than a year later, RNE holds one of the most advanced BESS project portfolios in Italy.
The nascent buildout of BESS in Italy is mainly driven by the increasing share of intermittent renewable energy generation in the Italian electricity mix, which necessitates storage capacity to match supply and demand throughout the day. Based on Italian renewables targets formulated as part of the European Union’s RePowerEU plan, which envision to more than double renewables capacity to 131 GW by 2030, almost 20 GW storage capacity will have to be brought online over the next 6 years. With a supportive regulatory framework opening up revenue opportunities through capacity markets, price arbitrage, and the provision of ancillary services, Italy is deemed a highly attractive market for the greenfield development of BESS.
The expansion of RNE demonstrates the strengths of SUSI’s partnership-based investment approach. By building close relationships with local management teams and ensuring long-term alignment of interests, SUSI can react quickly to emerging market trends and investment opportunities. Built on collaborations with local management teams across OECD markets, SETF today holds a well-diversified portfolio across a wide spectrum of energy transition themes, including clean energy generation, energy efficiency, battery energy storage, customer energy solutions, and electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
