Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners (“Quinbrook”), a specialist investment manager focused exclusively on the new infrastructure needed for the energy transition, and its portfolio company Primergy Solar (“Primergy”) announced today the sale of a minority equity stake in its US$1.2 billion Gemini Solar + Storage project outside of Las Vegas to APG, the largest pension asset manager in the Netherlands. APG has agreed to acquire a 49% equity ownership in the project on behalf of its pension fund client ABP.
Earlier this year, Quinbrook and Primergy began seeking equity partners for Gemini, a 690MWac solar plus 1,416 MWh battery energy storage facility. APG was selected by Quinbrook and Primergy following the receipt of multiple offers from a diverse group of prospective investors ranging across the industrial and financial investor landscape. APG is an experienced investor in US renewables and has several direct investments in utility-scale solar and storage assets in the US. Gemini will be APG’s largest single solar + storage investment to date. Once complete and operational in 2023, Gemini is expected to generate enough clean energy to power more than 400,000 homes during peak periods and displace 1.5 million metric tons of CO2 annually.
Gemini is currently the largest solar + storage project under construction in the US and recently closed a record breaking US$1.9 billion tax equity and debt financing led by Bank of America, Truist, KeyBanc, MUFG, and NORD/LB. Truist Securities also advised Quinbrook and Primergy on the transaction.
David Scaysbrook, co-founder and Managing Partner of Quinbrook commented, “We are very excited to welcome APG as a partner to Quinbrook and Primergy as we advance construction of such a milestone project for US clean energy. Given the scale and impact of Gemini, we felt APG was an exemplary partner for us that is differentiated by its sophisticated approach to the Gemini project and to the US renewables market more generally. Our Primergy team will continue to manage the construction and operational phases of Gemini with some exciting milestones coming up as the mammoth Gemini Project takes shape.”
“The size, innovative integration of battery storage and siting on federal lands makes Gemini one of the most sophisticated clean energy projects ever developed. We are thrilled that APG, an experienced US renewables investor, is confident in our team’s capabilities to continue to build, and then to operate and maintain one of the largest solar plants ever constructed. Gemini is one of the first large-scale projects to approach clean energy development in a holistic way that successfully integrates ecosystem management and a commitment to local partnerships as well as delivering numerous other ESG related benefits. Together with Quinbrook, we look forward to partnering with APG in delivering a monumental clean power project for Nevada.”
-Ty Daul, CEO of Primergy Solar
Steven Hason, Managing Director of Americas Real Assets for APG, stated “As a responsible investor, we are always looking for infrastructure investments that bring long-term financial returns for our pension clients and that have positive environmental and social impacts. This transaction represents an ideal opportunity to invest in a state-of-the-art energy project that will provide clean, renewable electricity for Nevada. We look forward to working with our partners who share our long-term investment goals with regard to this critical infrastructure asset.”
About Quinbrook
Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners (http://www.quinbrook.com) is a specialist investment manager focused exclusively on renewables, storage and grid support infrastructure needed to drive the energy transition in the US, UK and Australia. Quinbrook is led and managed by a senior team of power industry professionals who have collectively invested c.USD 8.2 billion of equity in energy infrastructure assets since the early 1990s, representing a total enterprise value of c.USD 28.7 billion or 19.5 GW of power supply capacity. Quinbrook has completed a diverse range of direct investments in both utility and distributed scale onshore wind and solar power, battery storage, reserve peaking capacity, biomass, fugitive methane recovery, hydro and flexible energy management solutions in the US, UK, and Australia. Quinbrook is currently developing and constructing some of the largest renewables and storage infrastructure projects ever undertaken in the US, UK, and Australia.
About Primergy
Primergy is a developer, owner and operator focused on both distributed and utility scale solar PV and battery storage projects in North America with portfolios of over 8 GW of solar and battery energy storage projects in development, construction and operations in 17 different states. Primergy features a diverse and talented team with decades of experience in renewables project development, financing, construction and operations. Primergy is a portfolio company of Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners and represents Quinbrook’s principal solar and solar plus energy storage investment platform in North America.
About APG
APG is the largest pension provider in the Netherlands. With approximately €558 billion in AUM, APG invests on behalf of Dutch pension funds and their 4.8 million participants. In addition to asset management, APG provides executive consultancy, pension administration, pension communication and employer services. APG has a global presence with offices in Heerlen, Amsterdam, Brussels, New York, and Hong Kong, as well as satellite sites in Shanghai and Beijing. APG has been an active infrastructure investor since 2004, investing over €17.0 billion to date. APG's investments include assets within power & utilities, energy, telecommunications, and transport infrastructure. APG's Global Infrastructure team is comprised of 40 investment professionals. For more information, visit: https://apg.nl/en.