Australian-based clean energy company Akaysha Energy has closed a $460 million construction finance facility and has commenced construction of its new large-scale battery energy storage system, the Elaine BESS, in southwest Victoria.
The financing is supported by a consortium of eight leading international and domestic banks, including BNP Paribas, CIBC, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, ING, Mizuho, MUFG, SMBC and Société Générale, with an additional $75 million in letters of credit to support security obligations.
The project, which features a capacity of 311MW / 1244MWh, is backed by a 15-year Virtual Tolling Agreement with Snowy Hydro. Construction began in October 2025, marking Akaysha’s first large-scale energy storage deployment in Victoria and its continued expansion in the Australian renewable energy sector.
Akaysha has partnered with Tesla and Consolidated Power Projects to deliver the facility, which is expected to play a key role in managing transmission outage risks, supporting integration of wind and solar into the National Electricity Market (NEM), and enhancing reliability of supply in the state. Chief Financial & Investment Officer Andrew Wegman described the financing as an important step for Australia’s energy transition, signalling strong institutional backing for large-scale battery infrastructure.
The milestone follows recent significant achievements for Akaysha, including reaching commercial operation on 350 MW of the world’s most powerful battery and securing a A$300 million corporate debt facility—the first borrowing base loan of its kind in Australia’s renewables market.
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