EnBW closes the acquisition of VALECO in France

• The authorities and the French Minister for the Economy and Finance give the green light to the full acquisition of the French developer and operator of wind and solar farms

• EnBW aims at turning VALECO into one of the Top 5 players in the wind and solar market in France in the medium term

Karlsruhe/Montpellier. After having received the final official approvals, EnBW Energie Baden-Württemberg AG closed the acquisition of the French developer and operator of wind and solar farms VALECO on 3 June 2019. EnBW’s bid was previously accepted in a highly competitive field of bidders. The acquisition strengthens EnBW’s activities in the renewable energy sector over the long term as a key future business area for the company and at the same time secures growth opportunities in one of the most important markets for renewable energy in Europe.

“The acquisition of VALECO marks a significant step forward in the rigorous expansion of EnBW in renewable energy to make them one of the main pillars of the company. In addition, the target of reaching 1,000 MW of installed capacity in the onshore wind sector by 2020 has now nearly been achieved. With VALECO, we now have one of the most experienced players on the French renewable energy market at our side. We will exploit the growth opportunities together and become one of the Top 5 players on the French wind and solar market in the medium term as strong partners”, emphasised EnBW CEO Frank Mastiaux. Hans-Josef Zimmer, Chief Technical Officer, added: “EnBW and VALECO fit very well together. We are delighted to now have our new colleagues from France on board. And we are looking forward to future cooperation and numerous joint projects.”

VALECO is based in Montpellier and is one of the Top 10 operators of renewable energy farms on the French market. The company employs around 135 people in the onshore wind and solar sectors and is active along the entire value added chain throughout France from development and construction through to operation. With an installed capacity of 276 megawatts of onshore wind power and 56 megawatts of solar power, as well as a project pipeline of 1,700 megawatts, VALECO reported an annual turnover of around 50 million euros last year. Alongside the company headquarters in Montpellier, VALECO also has project development offices in Amiens, Nantes and Toulouse.

The previous owners of VALECO were the founding family Gay and the bank Caisse des dépôts et consignations (CDC).

Erick Gay, Chairman of the Holding Gay: “EnBW was the most suitable player for VALECO to continue its story as an independent and integrated player within the French market. The steady growth of VALECO was requiring a scale-up in terms of processes and funds to support the impressive pipeline developed over the last years. With EnBW, VALECO is now ready to follow on the entrepreneurial adventure launched by my family and turned into one of the main renewable energies French player thanks to its employees. I am particularly proud of what we have done with all our stakeholders and wish VALECO, EnBW and its employees the best for their future.”

Olivier Sichel, CEO of Banque des Territoires: “As a leading public financial institution involved in the renewable energy market in France, Banque des Territoires has been supporting VALECO's development for 10 years. VALECO's growth was a real success and we considered it was the right moment to sell our stake along with Holding Gay. Banque des Territoires is convinced that EnBW industrial project is really relevant to further support the growth of the company and the development of its teams. Banque des Territoires, as a public investor, is proud of the work accomplished, alongside the VALECO Group's teams over the years. This is a good example of how we are helping the economy of our regions.”

The acquisition of VALECO increases the renewables portfolio of EnBW by an impressive 31 percent right from the start – and will also make an immediate contribution to the EnBW Group’s operating result. Over the last few years, EnBW has already installed more than 1,200 megawatts of generation capacity from renewable sources.

EnBW has invested around three billion euros to date in the expansion of renewable energy as part of its strategy EnBW 2020. The company plans to invest more than five billion euros by 2025 in the further expansion of renewable energy in Germany and selected foreign markets. Since 2018, EnBW has been active itself in France and has been developing the onshore wind and solar business together with its subsidiary EnBW Energies Renouvelables SAS.