[SMM PV Flash] Australia's Waroona Solar-Storage Project Signs A$280 Million Syndicated Facility

New Zealand renewable energy company Lightyears Group announced on 3 November a combined NZ$174 million (about US$102 million) of investment and debt support, with Japan's Obayashi Corporation planning to invest NZ$74 million for a 90% stake in new project-holding company LYOC1 Limited through milestone-based contributions and Australian infrastructure debt investor InfraDebt providing a NZ$100 million loan facility. The funding will support more than 300 MW of utility-scale solar and battery storage projects that Lightyears plans to advance over the next five years. The package builds on the Obayashi-Lightyears strategic partnership, and marks InfraDebt's first New Zealand transaction after the two parties began working together in 2025. Lightyears' 14 MW Reefton solar plant on the West Coast is nearing completion, its 15 MW Te Aho o te Rā plant developed with eight Maori land trusts is scheduled for completion in July 2027, and a 6 MW plant is under construction at Ashburton.

Thai Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anutin Charnvirakul said on 3 November that the Budget Bureau has readied funding for the first phase of the People's Solar programme covering 1 million households at 50,000 baht each, and that the Provincial Electricity Authority and the Metropolitan Electricity Authority have completed the relevant procedures, with the cabinet adding no further instructions at its meeting that day. The programme was approved by the cabinet on 27 October with a total budget of 50 billion baht drawn from the energy-transition portion of a 400 billion baht loan decree, and participating households must install systems of at least 5 kW and no more than 10 kW, with registration open until 31 January 2027. Under a net-billing design the government will buy surplus output of up to 5 kW at 2.20 baht per kilowatt-hour for about 20 years, while three state financial institutions are to offer loans of about seven years at 2.5% interest for the portion above the subsidy. An internal Provincial Electricity Authority document in Chiang Mai listing an 110,000 baht installation price has been recalled and referred to an investigation committee, leaving execution and installer pricing discipline as the near-term risks.

On November 2, Indian solar manufacturer Avaada Electro received approval from the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE), with its 7.1 GW N-type TOPCon solar cell manufacturing capacity successfully included in India's Approved List of Models and Manufacturers (ALMM). The company also introduced a new solar module product with an output power of up to 745 W. The certification is expected to further expand India's domestic supply of ALMM-compliant TOPCon solar cells, while highlighting the continued efforts of Indian solar manufacturers to upgrade towards N-type technologies and strengthen their vertical integration strategies.