KGAL ESPF 5 joins forces with IMCS on battery systems in Italy

Earlier this month, on August 1, 2024, KGAL acquired a majority stake in the share capital of SEO Holding Srl. Through a special corporate vehicle, SEO Holding Srl owns four battery energy storage projects in Italy with a cumulative power output of around 1.1 GW. KGAL has now revealed it has joined forces with IMCS in a joint venture to develop the four energy storage systems.

Raffaello Giacchetti, CEO at IMCS and leader of the Group of Developers that own IMCS today confirmed that KGAL has acquired 55% of SEO, with IMCS holding the remaining 45%. He said more about the first of the four battery storage projects will be revealed later this month. KGAL and IMCS already on renewable energy projects in Sardinia, Tuscania, and Vitorchiano. Tuscania is one of the largest solar parks in Italy with 150 MW.

The joint venture allows the two companies to develop the BESS projects at an early stage and then sell them when they reach ready-to-build (RTB) status. This capitalizes on the strong political support for the emerging market of energy storage systems in Italy. For the German finance company, the investment contributes to the portfolio diversification of the KGAL ESPF 5 Article 9 fund.

“We are pleased to enter the emerging market for battery energy storage systems in Italy with our trusted partner KGAL at a strategically favourable time. Now is the right time: Italy needs to build new energy storage systems with a capacity of at least 15 gigawatts by 2030 to meet the targets of the national energy strategy”, says Giacchetti. 

In Italy, last spring, the KGAL ESPF 5 renewable energy fund successfully advanced its first asset from project development to grid connection. This was the Spalletti solar park in northern Italy, with a capacity of 17 MW. KGAL said other solar parks, with a total capacity of 100 MW, will come online later this year.

Two years after the launch of the KGAL ESPF 5 fund, 85% of the 334 million euros in capital has already been allocated.