Frontier Energy has secured AU$110 million to help advance early works for its Waroona solar battery project in Western Australia.
The company raised the funds through a placement of 550 million new shares at 20 cents per share. Frontier’s directors collectively committed an additional $3.3 million to the placement.
The secured equity satisfies a prerequisite for the project’s debt financing strategy. Frontier is currently advancing parallel negotiations with a shortlist of tier-one banks for a senior project debt facility to fund the remaining development costs.
With detailed term sheets received, independent technical reviews completed by Aurecon, and due diligence finalised, the company expects to secure binding, credit-approved debt commitments by July 2026.
Once both components are locked in, stage one of the Waroona development will be fully funded ahead of a final investment decision by the board.
The total capital estimate for Stage One has been updated to AU$310 million before contingency, or AU$326.9 million inclusive of allowances.
While this represents a cost increase over the project’s 2024 definitive feasibility study due to inflationary pressures, it also accounts for a heavily expanded infrastructure footprint.
The revised configuration features a larger 132-megawatt (MW) solar facility, utilising roughly 200,000 high-capacity 660W panels, and a significantly upgraded 81.5MW battery energy storage system with a 6.9-hour duration designed to capture peak evening electricity prices.
Frontier Executive Chairman Jamie Cullen labelled the equity raising a pivotal milestone that paves the clear path to financial close.
“Together with our already strong support from existing investors, the appetite from new investors highlights both the quality of our Stage One project, and the pipeline for future development at Waroona to create a major renewable energy precinct in the South West of WA,” Cullen said.