Global investment manager Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners has closed record debt financing for Cleve Hill Solar Park, the UK’s largest solar and battery storage project and the first to be consented as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project.
The 373MW solar and 150MW battery energy storage system (BESS) project in Kent is expected to commence operations in 2025.
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The project financing, combining a GBP 218.5 million term loan and a GBP 20 million VAT facility, is provided by Lloyds and NatWest. The financing is the largest solar + battery storage project financing ever closed in the UK and was arranged in two tranches, with the term loans for the solar PV completed in August 2024 and for the BESS facility in March 2025.
In addition to securing the largest award for a UK solar project in Round 4 of the government’s 15-year Contract for Difference auction scheme and the landmark offtake agreement with Tesco PLC for 65% of the solar generation, the project will also benefit from a 15-year Capacity Market Agreement for the BESS.
“When this project was envisioned over five years ago, we knew solar and battery storage projects of this scale would play a critical role in accelerating the UK’s transition and Cleve Hill is a prime example of how strategic investments can enhance national energy infrastructure,” Quinbrook co-founder and managing partner Rory Quinlan said.
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Cleve Hill was granted development consent in May 2020 and is expected to help reduce carbon emissions by more than 142,000 tonnes in the first year of operations while also seeking to deliver a net gain of over 67% in biodiversity.
