Marinus Link financed: contractors given notice to proceed
Marinus Link Pty Ltd (MLPL) has achieved financial close and issued notices to proceed on its cable and converter contracts following a record investment by the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC).
The investment completes the financing requirements for Marinus Link Stage 1, which received equity commitments from the Commonwealth, Tasmania and Victoria in August.
The confirmation of project financing has enabled the issuance of notices to proceed for Marinus Link’s cable and converter technology suppliers, Prysmian Powerlink and Hitachi Energy, who will now finalise engineering designs and commence pre-construction activities.
The CEFC’s commitment is expected to be $3.8bn ($nominal), inclusive of capitalised interest during construction. The final amount of concessional finance is subject to the regulator’s final determination on project costs.
MLPL CEO Stephanie McGregor said the two pivotal milestones are a major landmark in transitioning to the Manufacturing, Construction and Commissioning phase.
“Marinus Link Stage 1 is now fully funded, we have key Commonwealth and Victorian environmental approvals, a draft regulatory decision and almost all major contracts in place.”
“Our expert team is mobilising for construction in 2026, and we are thrilled to deliver this critical national energy infrastructure, which will bolster energy security, promote renewable energy investment and deliver tangible benefits to consumers in Tasmania, Victoria and the broader National Electricity Market.”
The CEFC’s long-term concessional finance, along with low-returning equity from the government shareholders, is expected to deliver $900 million in benefits to Tasmanian and Victorian electricity consumers during the first five years of the project’s operation alone. It means that the concessional finance will reduce the impact of transmission-related consumer costs by 45 per cent.
“As a specialist green energy investor, the CEFC is committed to using our capital to accelerate the delivery of nation-building projects of this scale. As with all our transmission-related investments, we have taken care to structure our finance in a way that maximises the benefits to consumers, by lowering project borrowing costs, which in turn will lower overall project costs,” CEFC CEO Ian Learmonth said.
“The ability to access the concessional loan through the CEFC enables us to deliver this critical infrastructure at the lowest possible cost to consumers,” MLPL CEO Stephanie McGregor said.
MLPL is jointly owned by the Commonwealth of Australia, the State of Tasmania and the State of Victoria. MLPL is responsible for progressing the Marinus Link interconnector project.