Startup · $325m raised · Energy
Singapore, NT
Every investor coverage indicates participated in a round SunCable raised.
| Investor | Rounds | Invested |
|---|---|---|
| Twiggy Forrest | Unnamed stage | - |
| Squadron Energy | Series B · Unnamed stage | - |
| Mike Cannon-Brookes | Venture debt · Series B · Unnamed stage | $65,000,000 |
| Grok Ventures | Venture debt · Series B · Unnamed stage | $65,000,000 |
| Grok Capital | Venture debt | $65,000,000 |
| Greyrock Investments | Venture debt | $65,000,000 |
| Dr Andrew Forrest | Series B | - |
The transaction that ended SunCable's run as a startup, per published coverage. It closes the funding history too, where it is the ladder's last rung.
| Bought by | Kind | Announced | Price | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Helietta Holdings | Acquisition | Sep 2023 | - | Startup Daily (Mon 6 Nov 2023), Startup Daily (Mon 11 Sep 2023) |
| Grok Ventures | Acquisition | May 2023 | - | RenewEconomy (Fri 9 Feb 2024), RenewEconomy (Tue 4 Jul 2023) |
Companies SunCable acquired or merged with, per published coverage. Buying a company is not investing in one: nothing here counts in the deals column.
Stories naming SunCable. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
SunCable denies reports its huge Northern Territory project is faltering, saying its fundraising is on track with healthy investor interest, while Grok Ventures reportedly weighs selling part of its stake.
Blackbird partner Samantha Wong reflects on a decade of the firm's Sunrise conference and Australia's startup ecosystem, recalling Atlassian's Nasdaq listing and Aconex's float and sale to Oracle.
Also SmartCompany
Roundup: Space Machines' joint India mission clears a design milestone with an $8.5m government grant behind it, RMIT and Skykraft scale up photonics-based navigation tech, and SunCable names a new group CEO.
Jelix's note explains its fund's participation in Fugu Carbon's newly announced seed round, with Investible leading and Counteract VC plus Electrifi Ventures also in, covering the carbon capture venture's market, technology and founders.
Perth green hydrogen developer LH2 Energy has secured an undisclosed seed sum from a European private investor joining backers from Japan, Korea and Australia for its planned Darwin floating hub.
An interview with Sun Cable's co-founder about his advisory firm's new report urging Australian investment in solar recycling, aviation fuel, and clean export industries.
Mike Cannon-Brookes' investment vehicle Grok Ventures has hired Tan Kueh, ex-Macquarie, UBS and BlackRock, as CEO, joining CIO Jeremy Kwong-Law, as it sharpens its strategy around climate investing.
SunCable appoints two industry executives — Cameron Garnsworthy as Australian managing director and Martin Hay as chief development officer — to drive the onshore component of its Northern Territory baseload solar and storage project.
A rolling roundup of Australian energy-sector job moves, listing dozens of executives, directors and ministers joining or leaving utilities, regulators, developers and industry bodies between May and December 2023.
5B, a New South Wales solar technology firm, has hired Sun Cable's co-founder and ex-CEO David Griffin as its new chief executive, succeeding co-founder Chris McGrath.
SunCable has picked Bell Bay in Tasmania for its manufacturing facility after a two-year site search; the piece also recalls the administration fight that left Cannon-Brookes' consortium in control.
Sun Cable has picked Bell Bay in Tasmania for a potential cable factory to serve its planned solar power exports to Singapore, though the idea remains at an early stage.
Renewables investor Quinbrook has completed fundraising for its UK-focused Renewables Impact Fund, securing £620 million in commitments (A$1.2 billion), more than a fifth above its £500 million target.
Billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes, via a Grok-linked joint venture with Quinbrook, has completed the buyout of SunCable out of administration; the article also recalls earlier raises and names an interim CEO.
Also RenewEconomy·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing
Sun Cable cuts scores of jobs and its three founders step back from executive roles as buyers Grok Ventures and Quinbrook finalise the takeover agreed in May.
Also RenewEconomy
A Grok Ventures-led consortium with Quinbrook has agreed to acquire Sun Cable out of administration, reviving plans to ship solar power to Singapore, after Andrew Forrest's side stayed out of the final bidding.
Solar manufacturer 5B has started building its automated pilot production line in Mascot, NSW, with support from an ARENA grant; the company counts Turnbull, Holmes à Court and BP among its backers.
Administrators begin selling Sun Cable; Cannon-Brookes' Grok lent $65 million interest-free to retain staff while Forrest's Squadron Energy opposes the Singapore cable plan.
Atlassian's cofounder, through his family firm Grok Ventures, has extended a $65 million interest-free loan to administrator-run Sun Cable, which is up for sale after a founder split; Grok earlier co-led its $210 million Series B.
Sun Cable's administrators held a first creditors' meeting and sought interim funding while preparing the company for sale, with Forrest and Cannon-Brookes likely bidders and Iberdrola and Macquarie possible contenders.
The energy minister plays down Sun Cable's move into voluntary administration as a structural change, insisting its Australia-Asia PowerLink will proceed, while co-backers Cannon-Brookes and Forrest have reportedly fallen out.
Solar developer Sun Cable has entered voluntary administration after its two major backers failed to agree on funding, with FTI Consulting appointed and a recapitalisation or sale flagged as likely.
Australian solar firm 5B completed a Series B round and is cutting staff while refocusing on its Maverick deployment technology amid supply chain pressures.
Also @AuManufacturing
Ignition Lane's weekly roundup covers Linktree's unicorn raise, several Australian funding rounds, Tiger and Insight's new mega-funds, falling SaaS valuations, the ACCC's action against Meta, and new accelerator and product launches.
Startup Daily's weekly SUDS podcast wrap: UK laws threatening jail for tech executives, interviews with founders of SpaceDraft, Flowingly and Book An Artist, Sun Cable's solar export ambitions, and NFT tax guidance.
Sun Cable has raised A$210 million in Series B funding from existing shareholders, led by Mike Cannon-Brookes' Grok Ventures and Andrew Forrest's Squadron Energy, for its giant solar, battery and subsea cable project.
Also Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·RenewEconomy·RenewEconomy
Atlassian's Cannon-Brookes, via his family firm Grok Ventures, has invested $200 million in renewables project financier Infradebt days after his AGL bid was rejected; the capital is already funding a Queensland battery project.
Also TechCrunch Venture·Crunchbase News·TechCrunch Venture·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·TechCrunch Venture
Solar technology company 5B has launched an automation program backed by a government agency grant, aiming to cut the cost of its deployable solar systems, and recently bought a solar manufacturing business.
Also @AuManufacturing
Photon Energy has proposed a huge South Australian solar-plus-storage plant using RayGen's technology. The article also recalls RayGen's recent $55 million round backed by Chevron, Schlumberger, Equinor and Photon, plus AGL and ARENA support.
Also Breakthrough Victoria·RenewEconomy·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing
Startup Daily reports the Atlassian co-founder and his wife have pledged a billion dollars via their family firm Grok Ventures to climate-focused startups, plus half a billion to philanthropy.
Profile of SunDrive, the Sydney solar startup whose copper-based cells set a world efficiency record, covering its founders, backers including Grok Ventures, Blackbird and ARENA, and plans for rooftop then large-scale markets.
Solar technology company 5B has closed an oversubscribed funding round, drawing fresh backing from Malcolm Turnbull and Simon Holmes a Court alongside existing investors, to speed product development and enter overseas markets.
Canberra commits a 15 million dollar grant toward a proposed 35MW Darwin big battery meant to cut gas generation, alongside funding for remote microgrids, while Sun Cable eyes Darwin manufacturing.
US energy company AES has anchored 5B's US$8.6 million funding round. The Sydney solar startup's technology is earmarked for the Sun Cable project, with first deployments planned in Panama and Chile.
Also RenewEconomy
Canberra grants Major Project Status to Sun Cable's planned Australia-Singapore electricity link; the article also recalls an oversubscribed roughly $50 million capital raise backed by Forrest and Cannon-Brookes.
Also RenewEconomy·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing
Sun Cable closed an oversubscribed first capital round, co-led by Grok Ventures and Squadron Energy, for its $25 billion plan linking a giant Northern Territory solar farm to Singapore via undersea cable.
Also Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·Startup Daily·@AuManufacturing·@AuManufacturing