King & Wood Mallesons (KWM) has advised EDP Renováveis, S.A. (EDPR), the renewable energy subsidiary of the Portuguese group EDP, on a transaction involving the transfer to institutional investors advised by J.P Morgan Asset Management of EDPR´s full equity shareholding and outstanding shareholder loans in an operating onshore wind portfolio in Spain, Portugal, France and Belgium. The deal, that is part of the asset rotation plan that EDPR has been developing during the last few years, has reached a value of approximately 800 million euros.
The asset portfolio, which will continue to be operated by EDPR, has a total enterprise value of 1.6 billion euros and includes 997 megawatts (MW) of installed capacity which has been distributed within four jurisdictions: (i) 348 MW in operation in Spain; (ii) 388 MW in operation in France; (iii) 191 in operation in Portugal; (iv) and 71 MW in operation in Belgium.
The advice to EDPR has been led by Corporate and M&A Partner Roberto Pomares, who has coordinated a multidisciplinary team of lawyers from different KWM offices, highlighting the work of: Teresa García (Associate – Corporate, Madrid); Enrique Murillo (associate – Corporate, Madrid), Alberto Ruano (Partner – Tax, Madrid); Covadonga Peréz (Associate – Tax, Madrid); Gonzalo Olivera (Energy and Infrastructure – Partner, Madrid); Barri Mendelsohn (Partner – Corporate, London); Sam Coleman (Counsel – Tax, London).
KWM has advised the EDP Group for more than 15 years on some of their main transactions within Spain. Among these it is worth highlighting the recent sale of Naturgas, the gas subsidiary of the group and the second largest distributor of gas in Spain.
EDP is an international energy group with presence in 14 countries and is one of the world leaders of renewable energy. In Spain, EDP is a key company in the energy market with presence in generation, distribution and commercialization of electricity and gas.
Advice on the sale of NovEnergia
In the last few years KWM has positioned itself among the leading law firms in Spain advising in the energy sector, particularly within renewables. Furthermore, within the first few quarter of 2019 this leadership was reinforced thanks to the advice on the transfer of NovEnergia Holding Company S.A. (NovEnergia) to the French energy company Total Eren. The deal, coordinated and led by Roberto Pomares, reached a total enterprise value of 1 billion euros and it is considered one of the most important deals in the European renewable energy market in the last few years.
Roberto Pomares highlights that “for us to have the confidence of NovEnergia and EDPR in their recent transactions has been a privilege. These two deals, without a doubt, have been among the most important in the 2019 European renewable energy market not only for the value reached but also the number of jurisdictions affected and the strategic importance for all involved companies”.
NovEnergia currently has a portfolio of 47 assets including wind farms, solar plants, and hydroelectric power stations, all which have a total aggregated capacity of 657 MW. The company operates in various European countries mainly, Spain, Portugal, France, Italy, Bulgaria, and Poland.
