Gore Street Energy Storage Fund PLC (LSE:GSF) is to acquire a portfolio of eight energy storage assets in Texas from Perfect Power Solutions Texas.
The portfolio consists of eight 9.9 megawatts (MW) storage projects totalling 79.2 MW. Three of the projects - which are each two-hour duration / 20 MWh (megawatt hours) systems - have been operating since September 2021 and the remaining five should enter operation within twelve months, delivering an expected total portfolio of roughly 160 Mwh, Gore Street said.
Following the acquisition, the energy storage fund will have 262 MW in operating assets, and a total portfolio of 708 MW, including the 28 MWh German acquisition announced last week.
The acquisition of the Perfect Power Solutions portfolio marks the company’s entry into the US market.
"We are pleased to be able to announce a further landmark international acquisition shortly after our entry into the energy storage market in continental Europe, highlighting the manager's ability to acquire value accretive assets across the globe. The acquisition further underpins our push into international markets, where they exhibit the same favourable characteristics as in GB and Ireland, meeting our returns criteria,” said Alex O’Cinneide, the chief executive officer of Gore Street Capital, the fund’s investment manager.
“We have been looking at both the European and US markets for a significant period to assess the best entry points. The electricity grids of individual states act as islands, in many ways like GB and Ireland, with their own challenges and opportunities. This acquisition presents a new high-quality counterparty, ERCOT, for our services within a significant market managing the flow of electric power to more than 26 million Texan customers. The portfolio itself presents a blend of operational and development assets which adds immediate revenue-generating assets to our portfolio, whilst providing the opportunity to utilise our proven in house technical and development capabilities to deliver systems at a competitive cost in an attractive market," he added.
In a separate announcement, Gore Street said it has amended its commercial management agreement with Gore Street Operational Management Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Gore Street Capital.
The amendments widen the scope of non-investment services provided to the company by the operations manager.
Pat Cox, the chair of Gore Sreet Energy Storage Fund, said the new terms better reflect the scope of services required for the company’s enlarged and rapidly growing infrastructure portfolio and present “compelling value for shareholders with transparency and greater control for the independent board of the company while ensuring that these assets receive best in class management."