Sun Cable administration: Mike Cannon-Brookes, Andrew Forrest’s Singapore solar energy plan chaos
>
A $30 billion project to capture solar power in the Australian outback and deliver it to Singapore is in jeopardy after a disagreement between its billionaire investors, Mike Cannon-Brookes and Andrew Forrest.
Sun Cable, the company behind the project’s large Northern Territory solar farm and 4,300km submarine cable system, went into voluntary administration on Wednesday.
Construction on the Northern Territory-based operation, touted as the world’s largest green energy project, was due to start in 2024.
The project was originally expected to create 2,000 jobs, $2 billion worth of Australian exports and supply 15 percent of Singapore’s electricity.
The $30 billion project to harvest solar power in the Australian outback and send it to Singapore is in jeopardy after a disagreement between its billionaire investors, Mike Cannon-Brookes (pictured left, with his wife Annie) and Andrew Forrest.
Construction on the Northern Territory-based operation, touted as the world’s largest green energy project, was due to start in 2024. Pictured, an artist’s impression of the solar farm.
But Cannon-Brookes and Forrest disagreed on several important issues about the project, known as Australia-Asia PowerLink, the abc informed.
They discussed the company’s financing and direction, the amounts of money Sun Cable was spending, and its inability to achieve key milestones tied to its venture capital financing deal.
Squadron Energy, privately owned by Forrest, vetoed $60 million in fundraising proposed by Cannon-Brookes.
His alternate plan would have seen Squadron take over the management of Sun Cable.
The stock holdings of the company’s founders could also have been diluted.
The plan was rejected by shareholders and Cannon-Brookes.
The Australia-Asia PowerLink would include the world’s longest undersea cable to carry solar-generated electricity to Singapore, with Indonesia to be added at a later date.
After Sun Cable missed key milestones, Mr. Forrest submitted a new plan that would have seen his company, Squadron Energy, take over management of the project. The shareholders and Mr. Cannon-Brookes rejected it.
The collapse comes less than a year after the two billionaires invested $210 million to finance the undersea cable.
The project involved building a 20 gigawatt (GW) solar farm on 12,000 hectares on a cattle station near Tennant Creek and capturing 42 gigawatt hours (GWh) of energy storage in the world’s largest battery grid.
Then the world’s longest undersea cable would carry solar-generated electricity to Singapore, with Indonesia added at a later date.
The company issued a statement suggesting the project is far from over. He spun the ad as an opportunity.
“The voluntary administration process will now unlock a path forward for the Company to access additional capital for the continued development of its brand project,” the statement said.
The volunteer project managers, FTI Consulting, are likely to seek new investment or sell the business.
“This project continues to be well positioned for completion,” said Sun Cable founder and CEO David Griffin.
The massive project, based on a cattle station near Tennant Creek, was expected to create 2,000 jobs, $2bn of Australian exports and supply 15 per cent of Singapore’s electricity. In the image, a file photo of the NT
Cannon-Brookes remains Chairman of Sun Cable and in the statement reaffirmed this commitment.
‘Sun Cable has achieved a lot since it was founded in 2018. I am confident that it will play a huge role in delivering green power to the world, right here from Australia.
“I fully support this ambition and the team, and I look forward to supporting the next chapter of the company,” he said.
His personal investment firm, Grok Ventures, said it was prepared to make additional investments in Sun Cable.
“Under the circumstances, even when all but one shareholder agreed with the company’s financing strategy, the board had no choice but to enter voluntary administration,” Grok said in a statement. 9 Newspapers informed.
There was no official comment from Mr. Forrest or Squadron Energy with the Sun Cable announcement.
The project was formally recognized by the Northern Territory Government in 2019.
Daily Mail Australia has reached out to Mr Forrest’s company, Squadron Energy, for comment.