Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer advises Statera Energy on 680MW BESS Project in Carrington

Leading global law firm Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer has advised Statera Energy as lead borrower counsel on its 680MW Battery Energy Storage System (BESS) project in Carrington, near Manchester, England. The firm advised on project financing, hedging, route to market, regulatory, floor arrangements, real estate, planning and diligence aspects.

The syndicate of lenders was led by Lloyds, who also acted as sole structuring bank. The other mandated lead arrangers comprised Skandinaviska Enskilda Banken AB (publ), Mizuho, NatWest, Santander and Siemens Financial Services (through Siemens Bank).

The Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer team was led by London Finance partner Dhananjaya Chak, supported by senior associate Emma Sturt, and associates Amaryllis Tian and Jenny Seong in Finance.

The core team included partner and global head of ESG/Sustainability Silke Goldberg, of counsel Chris Davis, senior associate Sam Cundall and associate Matt Berlansky who advised Statera Energy on a bespoke offtake strategy with Statkraft. Partner Sebastian Taylor, senior associate Ezra Smith and associates Tom Shattock and Tom Sycamore advised on real estate matters. Senior associate Oliver Grabowski and associate Shannon Smyth led on diligence aspects. Partner Tim Healey and associates Ieva Fiddes and Ross Jenkins advised on aspects relating to construction, and managing partner of the UK and EMEA Real Estate practice Matthew White and senior associate Natasha Hyde advised on planning aspects. Partner Nick May and associate Konstantin Korennoy advised on hedging documentation.

Partner Dhananjaya Chak commented, “This is our third successful debt close working with Statera Energy since 2023 and our first mandate acting for the company as borrower counsel. This transaction underscores the trust our clients choose to place in us to deliver first-of-a-kind strategies and to navigate complex financings in response to a rapidly evolving energy storage market. We’re very proud to have supported Statera Energy, a key client of the firm in the energy transition space, in achieving financial close on Carrington on schedule and look forward to working with them on their exciting pipeline of projects.”

CMS advised on negotiating the construction contracts.

The firm previously advised the syndicate of lenders on Statera Energy’s previous flexible financing, which closed the second and final phase of that financing in October 2024. The firm has also worked with several other developers on BESS and flexible generation projects, including on the Larks Green BESS project and on the Swangate BESS project.