Nofar Energy a global leader of renewable energy, announced that it has completed a significant financial closing for its energy storage activities in the UK. The project financing agreement was signed with a consortium of leading international and Israeli banks, including Goldman Sachs, Santander, Bank Hapoalim, and Bank Leumi. This financial closing secures senior project financing of up to £152 million for the Cellarhead project, one of the largest energy storage facilities in the UK, with a capacity of approximately 624 MWh, currently under construction.
This marks another significant milestone for Atlantic Green, Nofar Energy's storage platform in the UK, established in 2021. The platform specializes in initiating, developing, financing, constructing, and managing energy storage projects and is a market leader in the country. Recently, Nofar Energy announced the successful grid connection and commercial operation of the Buxton project, with a capacity of 60 MWh, following its completion and receipt of project financing from Goldman Sachs.
According to the company, the completion of this financial closing and the signing of the financing agreement with the international and Israeli bank consortium—after thorough legal, technical, financial, and ESG due diligence—reflects the high quality of the project and platform. This will support the continued growth and energy storage activities of the group, which includes projects with a total capacity of approximately 10 GWh across the UK, Germany, the US, Italy, Poland, Romania, and Israel.
In Nofar's Q2 reports, the company highlighted a significant increase in connected and under-construction projects, reaching approximately 2,296 MW of solar systems and 1,097 MWh of energy storage facilities. These projects are expected to generate annual revenues of approximately 1.5 billion NIS and an annual EBITDA of 1.2 billion NIS, with approximately 72% of the company's connected capacity benefiting from long-term guaranteed tariffs averaging 15 years. Additionally, the company announced it expects a significant increase in revenues and profits, projecting an EBITDA of 1,071 million NIS by 2026, representing a growth of approximately 209% compared to EBITDA over the past 12 months.
Simon Walters, the British ambassador to Israel, said the following: "This milestone green energy project financing deal of the Cellarhead 624 MWh battery energy storage system marks a significant investment into the UK for Nofar Energy and we are proud to have supported. It underscores the strong UK-Israel bilateral trade relationship and aligns with the UK's goal of decarbonizing its power sector by 2030. With 50% of UK electricity already coming from renewables, the UK's leadership in clean energy is evident. The UK government's recent £8.3B capitalization of Great British Energy, which will work in partnership with the private sector and investors like Nofar Energy, will drive the installation and acceleration of thousands of large-scale clean power projects and investment in next-generation technologies. This investment boosts energy security, protects consumers, and creates sustainable jobs."
Nadav Tenne, CEO of Nofar Energy, said the following: "We continue to execute our multi-year work plan and are proud to announce another significant project financing transaction, bringing our total signed financial closings in Europe over the past two years to approximately 4.2 billion NIS. This financing deal is a key milestone for the company as it continues its extraordinary construction and connection momentum, with another significant leap in activity expected in 2025. I want to thank all our partners for their efforts in securing this financing. We remain committed to strengthening security forces and praying for the swift and safe return of all hostages."
Justin Lomheim, Managing Director at Goldman Sachs, said the following, "Cellarhead represents an important project in the UK's battery storage pipeline. GS is pleased to support the project as sole structuring bank, mandated lead arranger and lender on the financing, as well as with its innovative battery optimization offering."
