$30 Billion Sun Cable Solar Mega Project Enters Administration
Essay by Eric Worrall
Sun Cable, which planed to export up to 20GW of solar energy from the Australian outback to Singapore, has entered voluntary administration after an unresolvable dispute between backers.
Sun Cable collapses after dispute between billionaire investors Andrew Forrest and Mike Cannon-Brookes
By business reporters David Chau and Michael Janda
Sun Cable, the company behind a massive solar farm and power export project planned for the Northern Territory, has gone into voluntary administration.
Key points:
- The company’s ambition was to build the world’s largest solar project
- Its plan was to build a giant 20-gigawatt solar farm in the NT
- Sun Cable also wanted to build a 4,200-kilometre-long subsea cable to Singapore
The company, whose major investors include billionaires Mike Cannon-Brookes and Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest, provided a vague statement about why it collapsed:
“The appointment followed the absence of alignment with the objectives of all shareholders,” it said.
“Whilst funding proposals were provided, consensus on the future direction and funding structure of the company could not be achieved.”
The ABC understands that Sun Cable’s major investors, Mr Forrest and Mr Cannon-Brookes, had disagreements about the funding and direction of the company.
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Read more: https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-11/sun-cable-enters-administration/101845100
I don’t have details about what went wrong, but given the gap between raised capital vs how much they needed, my guess is the problem was a dispute between the backers about how much of their own money they should invest in the project, and which bits should be built first, to keep the project moving forward.
