Mercia Power Response, majority owned since 2015 by funds managed by Foresight Group (“Foresight”), is a leading provider of flexible power response services to the UK grid and specialises in developing, constructing and operating flexible gas peaking plants and battery storage assets. Mercia currently operates a portfolio of 262MW gas peaking and battery storage sites and has a development portfolio of over 400MW of battery storage sites.

Balance Power is a leading developer of battery storage sites in the UK. The founder-owned company has delivered 39 projects since inception across different energy technologies. Balance currently has a pipeline of over 1.4GW of battery storage assets across the UK.

Supernova Power will be scaled to provide a suite of capabilities across development, construction, operations, energy management, and financing, allowing for the accelerated build-out of the existing portfolio of battery storage sites and further acquisitions across flexible power technologies.

This investment is aligned with InfraVia’s strategy of supporting the energy transition by enabling the acceleration of renewable energy deployment in the UK. Supernova Power will help address the challenges facing intermittent renewable energy generation, in particular offshore wind, by aligning renewables production with demand and providing firm backup capacity for periods of low energy
generation.

InfraVia owns a majority equity stake in the combined company, with both Mercia Power and Balance Power management holding minority equity interests. Supernova Power will benefit from both management teams’ proven track record of project development, construction, and operations to deliver an ambitious build-out of battery storage and flexible generation.

Graham White, founder of Mercia Power Response, declared, “I would like to thank Foresight for supporting the growth of Mercia Power over the last ten years. Critical to that success has been the hard work and dedication from the whole Mercia Power team. Going forward the combination of Balance Power’s market-leading site development skills, Mercia Power’s operational experience and existing assets allied with InfraVia’s capital and existing BESS experience delivers a combined business that will be a potent force in the UK BESS market.”

Ed Wilson, Managing Director at Foresight Group, said: “We are delighted to have supported Mercia’s journey over the past decade and to see it now entering this next phase of growth. InfraVia’s investment is a strong endorsement of the platform that has been built and of the team behind it. We believe the combination with Balance Power creates a compelling opportunity to scale further and continue delivering essential flexibility to the UK energy system.”

Phil Thompson, founder of Balance Power, mentioned, “This is a proud and exciting milestone for myself and the team at Balance Power and we are delighted to be joining the InfraVia family. Mercia Power has an exceptional team and merging with them for this next part of our journey presents an opportunity to significantly accelerate our growth and impact on the energy transition. InfraVia’s team, industry knowledge and experience were key to delivering this transaction for which we are very thankful. We are looking forward to working closely with the InfraVia and Mercia teams over the coming years.”

Aymar de Tracy, Partner at InfraVia Capital Partners, stated, “The UK is a mature and sophisticated energy market providing attractive opportunities for investment where battery storage and gas peakers are essential to the stability of the grid and the transition to renewables over the long run. Mercia and Balance founders and management teams are key players in this market and we are pleased to partner with them to accelerate the build-out of BESS and create a leading UK flexible generation platform.”

InfraVia was advised by Macquarie Capital (M&A) and Ashurst (legal). Balance Power were advised by E&Y (M&A) and Burges Salmon (legal). Mercia Power Response and its management were advised by E&Y (M&A), Osborne Clarke (legal) and Squire Patton Boggs (legal).