Foresight Energy Infrastructure Partners II S.C.Sp, the flagship energy transition fund managed by Foresight Group LLP, has completed the acquisition of a 49 percent stake in Harmony Energy Income Trust plc. The remaining 51 percent was acquired by Blackmead Infrastructure Limited, a portfolio company of Foresight. Announced on July 9, 2025, the transaction takes Harmony private and gives Foresight full control of the United Kingdom’s largest operational two-hour battery energy storage system (BESS) portfolio. Comprising eight grid-connected sites across England and Scotland, the assets deliver a total installed capacity of approximately 400 MW/800 MWh.
The deal comes amid a broader pivot in the energy storage sector as investors shift away from volatile public market vehicles toward stable, revenue-generating private infrastructure. Harmony Energy Income Trust was among the first wave of publicly listed BESS investment trusts, but like peers, it faced growing scrutiny over inconsistent earnings and discount-to-NAV pressures in 2024 and early 2025. With this acquisition, Foresight positions itself at the forefront of European grid decarbonisation and flexible energy infrastructure.
What makes two-hour battery energy storage assets essential to the UK’s renewable grid stability?
As renewable penetration in the United Kingdom accelerates—especially from offshore wind and solar—battery energy storage has emerged as a vital enabler of grid flexibility. Two-hour BESS assets provide enough capacity to discharge power through critical peak windows, support frequency balancing, and participate in the UK’s ancillary services markets. With the National Grid increasingly relying on storage to reduce fossil fuel peaker usage, operational portfolios like Harmony’s are gaining strategic importance.
The Harmony Energy Income Trust portfolio consists of eight fully commissioned sites with an average size of 50 MW/100 MWh each. These assets are fully merchant in revenue structure, with optionality for capacity market payments, ancillary services, and balancing mechanism optimisation. With the UK’s current grid battery capacity at just under 6 GWh, the addition of 800 MWh further consolidates Foresight’s position as a serious player in the UK energy transition.
Why was Harmony Energy Income Trust taken private and what does this indicate about listed BESS vehicles?
Harmony Energy Income Trust debuted on the London Stock Exchange in 2021 with strong institutional support and a clear focus on high-duration storage. However, by early 2025, its share price was trading at over a 30 percent discount to NAV, reflecting investor concern over fluctuating merchant revenues, delayed new-build timelines, and the suspension of dividends. A broader trend was underway—listed BESS trusts such as Gresham House Energy Storage Fund and Gore Street Energy Storage Fund were also underperforming, prompting questions about the long-term viability of the public yieldco model in battery storage.
Foresight’s acquisition of HEIT at £0.924 per share values the equity at approximately £210 million. This was a premium over competing bids and followed a formal court-sanctioned scheme of arrangement in June 2025. Institutional investors largely supported the transaction, which offered greater visibility into platform monetisation, risk-adjusted returns, and long-term growth, compared to the listed trust model.
How does Foresight plan to leverage the HEIT portfolio to expand into continental Europe?
Foresight’s strategy is not limited to the UK. With battery storage expected to become a key pillar in Europe’s decarbonisation roadmap, FEIP II is actively targeting mature and near-mature markets such as Germany, Spain, Italy, and the Nordics. The HEIT acquisition provides a revenue-yielding base of operations and a replicable operational playbook for grid-connected BESS at scale.
The firm’s broader portfolio includes over 4.7 GW of managed clean energy assets across solar, wind, bioenergy, and storage. According to institutional sentiment, this pan-European expansion strategy is seen as timely, especially as countries increase capacity auction volumes and energy arbitrage markets begin to stabilise. Foresight’s move to consolidate operations under a private model could also serve as a catalyst for other infrastructure investors eyeing long-duration storage as a high-growth vertical.
What trading model and revenue structure make this BESS portfolio attractive to institutional investors?
The attractiveness of the 800 MWh HEIT portfolio lies not only in its size but in its revenue model. Two-hour storage assets can effectively arbitrage intraday electricity price spreads and offer fast dispatch services to grid operators. Revenue typically derives from a mix of balancing mechanism participation, frequency response contracts, and merchant trading.
Given that all eight assets are already operational and generating cash flows, the portfolio avoids construction risk and benefits from asset performance history. Institutional investors have also cited the value of operational data in supporting AI-driven bidding strategies and co-optimised portfolio management. Over time, these assets may integrate longer-term tolling agreements or hybrid models combining renewables and storage, providing further revenue durability.
What are analysts and institutional investors predicting for the future of large-scale BESS in the UK and EU?
The acquisition is seen as a bellwether moment in the battery storage industry. Analysts expect continued consolidation, especially as standalone BESS trusts struggle with margin compression and rising competition in frequency markets. Scale, operational performance, and revenue diversity are now seen as essential criteria for investor confidence. The UK’s 2027 grid reform agenda, which includes National Energy System Operator upgrades and streamlined BESS dispatch integration, could further support profitability.
In the EU, over 20 GW of storage projects are at varying stages of development. Private capital is flowing into scalable platforms, and infrastructure funds are increasingly embedding storage within broader energy transition portfolios. Foresight’s move pre-empts this shift, giving it a strong foothold for securing capacity in upcoming tenders and enabling cross-border asset management.
How might this acquisition change Foresight’s positioning within the infrastructure investment landscape?
By absorbing Harmony’s portfolio into its FEIP II fund, Foresight gains immediate scale in a market with few fully operational, long-duration BESS portfolios. The move boosts its credibility with institutional backers seeking resilient cash flows from energy transition assets. It also differentiates Foresight from yield-based listed models that have suffered from low liquidity and share price volatility.
Richard Thompson, Co-Manager at Foresight Energy Infrastructure Partners, described the acquisition as a “milestone” that adds “immediate scale, strong economics, and proven performance.” While no direct revenue figures were disclosed, previous HEIT trading statements indicated that operating revenues were ~£25 million annually across the portfolio, implying a 12x–13x multiple on earnings.
Future capital deployment may target co-location of solar or wind assets, or integration with hydrogen and EV charging networks—areas where FEIP II has expressed interest. Analysts expect Foresight to continue its thematic approach: invest in proven infrastructure, optimise through private capital, and scale across regulated and deregulated markets alike.
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