KKR-backed Zenobe primed for Australian big battery push
UK-based electric bus player Zenobe Energy is readying a push into the competitive grid-scale battery sector in Australia after raising about £870 million ($1.7 billion) from investors led by private equity giant KKR.
The firm will launch a grid-scale battery strategy in Australia by the year-end, and also expects to expand and broaden its 160-strong fleet of electric buses across the region into other states, said co-founder Nicholas Beatty.
The Zenobe team in Sydney in November 2022 (from left) Peter Keane, director, corporate finance; Nicholas Beatty, founder director; James Basden, founder director; Gareth Ridge country director, Au/NZ. Oscar Colman
“We’d expect Australia and New Zealand to represent one-third of business in the next two to three years, and raising this level of capital in a very difficult market is really exciting for us,” Mr Beattie said from the UK.
“We just look forward to being able to support Australia in … the greening of its electrical system and supporting areas where we have expertise.”
The capital raising, announced overnight Australian time, involves about £600 million from KKR and about £270 million from existing shareholder, Infracapital, a division of London-listed investment manager M&G.
Once completed, KKR and Infracapital will be joint majority owners in Zenobe, with Japanese energy giants JERA and Tepco Power Grid remaining as minority shareholders.
Mr Beatty said the new funding would provide the capital to supportthe targeted expansion of Zenobe’s electric bus fleet in Australia and New Zealand, driven by increasing tenders for electrified transportation from state governments. Electric buses can cost between £300,000 and £500,000, a higher up-front cost than their diesel
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