German wind turbine manufacturer Nordex SE is acquiring wind industry behemoth Acciona Windpower from Acciona SA, a Spanish renewable energy and infrastructure group, for EUR 785 million.
According to Nordex, the combined wind power entity will yield a ‘truly global company’ that will be better positioned to ‘reduce exposure to demand swings in individual markets.’
‘Both Nordex and Acciona Windpower have demonstrated ability to grow at impressive pace in recent years,’ says Lars Bondo Krogsgaard, CEO of Nordex. ‘In combining our business activities, we are laying a robust foundation for future profitable growth.’
The purchase price for Acciona Windpower comprises a cash payment of EUR 366.4 million and 16.1 million new Nordex shares valued at EUR 26.00 each. Additionally, Nordex's current main shareholders, SKion/Momentum Capital, will sell shares in Nordex to Acciona SA.
‘We are proud to be joining forces with Nordex to create a new industry leader based in Europe with a strong global footprint and a sustainable market position which, at the same time, maintains the unique integrated business model of our renewable energy division,’ comments Jose Manuel Entrecanales, Acciona SA's chairman and CEO.
According to Acciona SA, Acciona Windpower and Nordex complement each other in a number of ways. Nordex has a strong market position in Europe, while Acciona Windpower is well positioned in the Americas and emerging markets, with manufacturing facilities in the U.S., Brazil and Spain and a new factory under construction in India. The combined group has an estimated total order backlog of approximately 2.8 GW in 2015.
Krogsgaard will serve as CEO after the closing of the transaction, which is subject to approval by relevant competition authorities. He will be joined on the management board by Bernard Schaferbarthold, Nordex's chief financial officer, and two as-yet-unnamed executives from Acciona Windpower. The Nordex management board and company headquarters will remain in Hamburg, Germany.
