Acquisition would bolster EnBW’s wind power portfolio

EnBW will make an offer for the assets of insolvent wind farm group Prokon.German business daily Handelsblatt reported that EnBW would make an offer that would value Prokon at least 500 million euros ($558.25 million).

If successful, the acquisition would bolster EnBW’s wind power portfolio, helping it to diversify its business away from loss-making coal and gas-fired plants, which have come under intense pressure from renewable energy sources.

Late on Friday, German wind energy and solar power operator Capital Stage said it had made a binding offer for most of Prokon, adding a decision would be made by Prokon’s creditors committee by mid-May.

Prokon filed for insolvency in January 2014 after consumer groups accused it of attracting investors with promises of possible returns of at least 6 percent a year without giving sufficient warning of the risks.

The company, which operates 529 megawatts worth of wind farms in Germany and Poland, had raised 1.4 billion euros ($1.56 billion) mainly from retail investors by selling so-called profit participation rights, which were marketed through advertising campaigns on German prime-time television.

EnBW, which is due to release first-quarter results on Tuesday, owns 13.75 gigawatt of installed capacity, about a fifth coming from renewables.