Final bids for Australian battery developer, Edify Energy, will be submitted mid-way through September, according to two sources familiar.

La Caisse and Sembcorp will likely bid, according to two other sources.

Three or four, out of around 10 groups who filed indicative bids, remain in the process, one of the first two sources added.

Local media reported that IFM Investors, EQT Partners, Stonepeak, and Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners were looking.

CIP is no longer involved in the sale, according to three of the four sources and two more sources. An additional source said that IFM is out of the bidding too.

QIC looked at Edify but decided not to proceed, an eighth source said.

In June, Lazard Australia approached banks to lend into a stapled financing linked to the sale. The adviser has now received AUD 3bn (USD 1.9bn) of commitments.

Two of the sources said that they have been working on financings for individual bidders looking to beat the staple.

In March, Lazard started marketing Edify’s development business and an 11.2 GW portfolio of battery and solar projects.

The teaser for the Project Charger sale notes that Edify’s new owner will quickly have to come up with AUD 2.8bn in equity and debt to fund two shovel-ready projects, which are scheduled to reach notice to proceed by December 2025.

The Smoky Creek and Guthrie’s Gap 720 MWp solar/600 MW (2,400 MWh) battery hybrid project, is underpinned by 20-year CPI-linked toll agreements with Rio Tinto for 90% of the project’s capacity.

The Majors Creek and Ganymirra 360 MWp solar/300 MW (1,200 MWh) battery hybrid project is backed by 15-year Capacity Investment Scheme (‘CIS’) agreements with the federal government.

The teaser says 18% of Edify’s portfolio will be ready to build in 2025, a further 39% next year and 43% in 2027.

Fifty-nine per cent of the portfolio is in Queensland, 23% is in New South Wales, 12% is in Victoria and the remaining 6% is in South Australia.

The marketing document notes that the National Electricity Market will need another 21 GW of utility-scale storage and another 23 GW of utility-scale solar by the 2033 financial year if Australia is to hit its decarbonisation targets.

Edify has already sold the 185 MW/370 MWh Koorangie Battery to Sosteneo Capital Partners and the 150 MW/300 MWh Riverina and Darlington Point batteries to Federation Asset Management.

Officials and spokespeople at CIP, La Caisse, IFM, Lazard Australia and QIC declined to comment. Spokespeople at Edify and Sembcorp did not respond to requests for comment.