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POWERGRID Tenders 500 MW/1,000 MWh Battery Energy Storage Projects

Energy Storage Solutions Provider Return has <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/return-raises-348-million-from-apg-to-scale-energy-storage-capacity/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> €300 million (~$348 million) in growth equity from APG, on behalf of its pension fund client ABP, acquiring a minority stake through the transaction. The new capital will accelerate the expansion of Return’s battery energy storage platform across Europe. As part of the deal, the two companies have established a long-term strategic partnership designed to provide customers with reliable and flexible energy solutions for portfolio balancing, to manage renewable flows, and to ease grid congestion across Europe.
enspired, an optimizer for battery energy storage systems, has <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/enspired-extends-series-b-funding-to-over-47-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">extended</a> its Series B funding over €40 million (~$47 million), with participation from new investor Future Energy Ventures. The round also includes renewed commitments from Zouk Capital, EnBW New Ventures, Banpu NEXT, PUSH VC, and 360 Capital. This funding extension follows the company’s €25.5 million (~$27.5 million) Series B round announced in May 2024.
Allye Energy, a U.K.-based clean-tech company focused on delivering intelligent, modular, and sustainable battery energy storage solutions, <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/allye-energy-raises-2-5-million-in-seed-funding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $2.5 million in seed funding, led by returning investors Elbow Beach and Alpha Future Funds, to accelerate the rollout of its smart battery energy storage technology. The strategic funding round includes both equity and debt financing, offering Allye Energy the flexibility to scale up manufacturing and delivery of its energy storage systems.
The Advanced Carbons Company (TACC), a part of LNJ Bhilwara Group, has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/tacc-secures-sbi-for-active-anode-material-plant" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> a credit facility of ₹12.3 billion (~$139.93 billion) from the State Bank of India to finance its upcoming lithium-ion battery-grade graphite anode material manufacturing plant in Dewas, Madhya Pradesh. In its first phase, TACC plans to produce 20,000 metric tons (MT) of active anode materials annually, with a planned scale-up to 100,000 MT. The company is also advancing the commercial production of graphene and its derivatives, targeting over 4,000 MT annually.
The board of directors of Refex Green Power, a wholly-owned subsidiary company of Refex Renewables and Infrastructure, has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/refex-green-divest-stake-flaunt-solar-energy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">approved</a> the sale of its entire 74% equity stake in Flaunt Solar Energy, a step-down subsidiary. The stake will be sold at face value equal to cost for ₹74,000 (~$837), payable in cash, translating to ₹10 (~$0.11) per share based on a valuation that places the equity fair value in negative territory, according to a bourse filing.
For reports and trackers on funding and M&amp;A transactions in solar, energy storage, and smart grid sectors, click <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/clean-energy-reports/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Read last week&#8217;s funding <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-base-power-raises-1-billion/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">roundup</a>.

Funding and M&A Roundup: Return Raises $348 Million

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					</table>From: <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-return-raises-348-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Mercom Capital Group</a>
Energy Storage Solutions Provider Return has <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/return-raises-348-million-from-apg-to-scale-energy-storage-capacity/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> €300 million (~$348 million) in growth equity from APG, on behalf of its pension fund client ABP, acquiring a minority stake through the transaction. The new capital will accelerate the expansion of Return’s battery energy storage platform across Europe. As part of the deal, the two companies have established a long-term strategic partnership designed to provide customers with reliable and flexible energy solutions for portfolio balancing, to manage renewable flows, and to ease grid congestion across Europe.
enspired, an optimizer for battery energy storage systems, has <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/enspired-extends-series-b-funding-to-over-47-million/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">extended</a> its Series B funding over €40 million (~$47 million), with participation from new investor Future Energy Ventures. The round also includes renewed commitments from Zouk Capital, EnBW New Ventures, Banpu NEXT, PUSH VC, and 360 Capital. This funding extension follows the company’s €25.5 million (~$27.5 million) Series B round announced in May 2024.
Allye Energy, a U.K.-based clean-tech company focused on delivering intelligent, modular, and sustainable battery energy storage solutions, <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/allye-energy-raises-2-5-million-in-seed-funding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">raised</a> $2.5 million in seed funding, led by returning investors Elbow Beach and Alpha Future Funds, to accelerate the rollout of its smart battery energy storage technology. The strategic funding round includes both equity and debt financing, offering Allye Energy the flexibility to scale up manufacturing and delivery of its energy storage systems.
The Advanced Carbons Company (TACC), a part of LNJ Bhilwara Group, has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/tacc-secures-sbi-for-active-anode-material-plant" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> a credit facility of ₹12.3 billion (~$139.93 billion) from the State Bank of India to finance its upcoming lithium-ion battery-grade graphite anode material manufacturing plant in Dewas, Madhya Pradesh. In its first phase, TACC plans to produce 20,000 metric tons (MT) of active anode materials annually, with a planned scale-up to 100,000 MT. The company is also advancing the commercial production of graphene and its derivatives, targeting over 4,000 MT annually.
The board of directors of Refex Green Power, a wholly-owned subsidiary company of Refex Renewables and Infrastructure, has <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/refex-green-divest-stake-flaunt-solar-energy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">approved</a> the sale of its entire 74% equity stake in Flaunt Solar Energy, a step-down subsidiary. The stake will be sold at face value equal to cost for ₹74,000 (~$837), payable in cash, translating to ₹10 (~$0.11) per share based on a valuation that places the equity fair value in negative territory, according to a bourse filing.
For reports and trackers on funding and M&amp;A transactions in solar, energy storage, and smart grid sectors, click <a href="https://mercomcapital.com/clean-energy-reports/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.
Read last week&#8217;s funding <a href="https://www.mercomindia.com/funding-and-ma-roundup-base-power-raises-1-billion" target="_blank" rel="noopener">roundup</a>.

Energy storage solutions provider <a href="https://return.energy/?r=0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Return</a> has raised €300 million (~$348 million) in growth equity from APG, on behalf of its pension fund client ABP, acquiring a minority stake through the transaction. The new capital will accelerate the expansion of Return&#8217;s battery energy storage platform across Europe.
As part of the deal, the two companies have established a long-term strategic partnership designed to provide customers with reliable and flexible energy solutions for portfolio balancing, to manage renewable flows, and to ease grid congestion across Europe. The transaction was signed in October 2025 and, pending regulatory approval, is expected to close by the end of the year.
Return&#8217;s battery energy storage system platform connects storage sites across countries, offering real-time insight where energy is available and needed.
The company currently operates across the Netherlands, Germany, Belgium, and Spain, serving growing customer demand for energy flexibility. It has 70 MW of operational storage capacity in the Netherlands and an additional 450 MW under construction.
&#8220;Grid-scale battery storage is key to reliably integrate renewables and to ease grid congestion,&#8221; said Bart Saenen, Senior Investment Director at APG. &#8220;Return&#8217;s integrated platform, long-term vision on relations, and de-risked pipeline make it a strong partner for building grid resilience across Europe.&#8221;
The company was advised on the transaction by Santander CIB (exclusive financial advisor), KPMG (finance &amp; tax), Allen &amp; Overy and Shearman (legal), Baringa (market intelligence and commercial advisor), and DNV (technical). APG was advised by Nomura (lead financial advisor), Greenberg Traurig (legal), Timera and Montel (market intelligence and commercial advisors), RINA (technical advisor), and Deloitte (finance &amp; tax).
Last year, Return <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/energy-transition-platform-return-acquires-stake-in-jp-batterie-projekte/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">acquired</a> a majority stake in J&amp;P Batterie Projekte, an energy storage system developer, through a €50 million (~$56 million) investment and commitment, aimed at expanding Return&#8217;s position in Germany and the European energy storage market.
According to Mercom&#8217;s 1H and Q2 2025 Funding and M&amp;A for Energy Storage <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/product/1h-2025-funding-ma-report-energy-storage/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a>, VC funding in the sector totaled $1.7 billion across 36 deals, down 29% compared to the previous year.  Energy Storage Downstream companies received the most VC funding in 1H 2025.
In June, Hybrid Energy Storage Solutions (HESSTec), an energy storage solutions provider, <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/hybrid-energy-storage-solutions-raises-14-million-in-funding/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secured</a> €12 million (~$13.6 million) in a funding round. The funding round saw participation from ABB, SC Net Zero Ventures (managed by Suma Capital), and VERBUND X Ventures, a venture capital unit of Austria&#8217;s energy supplier VERBUND.

Return Raises $348 Million from APG to Scale Energy Storage Capacity

<a href="https://return.energy/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Return</a>, an energy transition investment and development platform, has acquired a majority stake in <a href="https://jp-batterie.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">J&amp;P Batterie Projekte</a>, an energy storage system developer, through a €50 million (~$56 million) investment and commitment.
Return and J&amp;P are expected to develop, finance, own, and operate a portfolio of projects, leveraging the experience of Return, which currently operates 70 MW (150 MWh) of operational assets and 450 MW (1,700 MWh) of ready-to-build projects. J&amp;P Batterie Projekte has over 4 GW of energy storage projects in its European pipeline.
The companies said this partnership will expand Return&#8217;s current position in Germany and the European energy storage market in the coming years.
Willem-Jan Schutte, CEO of Return, says, &#8220;This investment represents a significant step forward in our mission to become the leading flexibility provider in Europe. We are proud and happy to share that we have started this exciting cooperation with J&amp;P. By working together with Jens Peters and Philipp Jebens, combining expertise and resources with strategically chosen challengers in the energy market, we will be able to drive necessary energy storage development in Germany.&#8221;
Return is involved in developing and operating large-scale battery energy storage systems throughout Europe through its portfolio, which includes companies like SemperPower, Lion Storage, and J&amp;P. The company raised €100 million (~$108 million) in an investment round in late 2023, which it used to invest in partnerships with developers and back renewable projects.
According to Mercom&#8217;s 1H and Q2 2024 funding and M&amp;A <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/product/1h-q2-2024-funding-ma-report-storage-grid/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">report</a> for Energy Storage and Smart Grid, In the first half of 2024, there were 14 Energy Storage M&amp;A transactions, up from eight in the first half of 2023.
Last year, EQT, a private equity firm, through its EQT Infrastructure VI fund, agreed to <a href="https://cms.mercomindia.com/eqt-to-acquire-battery-storage-developer-and-operator-statera/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">acquire</a> Statera Energy, a U.K.-based battery storage and flexible generation infrastructure developer and operator from InfraRed Capital Partners. Statera has 1 GW of flexible generation in operation and under construction and a total project pipeline of over 16 GW, with plans to deliver 7.5 GW of flexibility assets by 2030.

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