Image: Karsten Würth via Unsplash
Acciona is considering spinning off its renewable energy division for listing amid a European Union green transition.
The Madrid-based energy and infrastructure conglomerate is considering an initial public offering for at least a 25% share of its energy unit Acciona Energy this year as it aims to double installed capacity by 2025, according to a company release. Acciona will retain a majority holding.
The listing will separate renewable energy ambitions from urban mobility, real estate and water businesses, and is expected on the Spanish stock exchange, although the final market has not yet been decided. Acciona’s stake in wind turbine manufacturer Nordex will not be included in the offering.
“In this environment, an IPO of our Energy business would provide us the opportunity to accelerate our growth with the right cost of capital and a better balance sheet structure,” said Acciona CEO José Manuel Entrecanales.
EU ambitions to seek carbon neutrality by 2050 have driven a boom in the share prices of clean energy producers. That has led companies to seek fundraising options, both for traditional renewables and hydrogen projects.
And speaking of hydrogen.
The IPO announcement comes days after an agreement to form a venture pairing Acciona’s clean energy with Plug Power Inc., a global leader in hydrogen fuel cell systems.
That venture plans to initially target the industrial and the mobility business segments. The goal is to reach a 20% market share of the green hydrogen business in Spain and Portugal by 2030, which will entail over €2 billion in investment.
The EU supports installing at least 6GW of renewable hydrogen electrolyzers across its territory and producing one million tonnes of renewable hydrogen by 2024.
In addition, Acciona and SSE Renewables signed an exclusivity agreement to develop offshore wind power projects in Spain and Portugal, according to a statement. The venture will combine Acciona’s strength as developer and operator of onshore renewable facilities with SSE Renewables’ skills from offshore wind farms.
Acciona posted a 380 million euro net income in 2020 on 6.47 billion euros in revenues. It halved its dividend as the pandemic hit business and reduced net financial debt by €584 million (-11%), to reach €4.73 billion by year end.
The company’s consolidated capacity increased by 578MW last year to total 10.69GW of installed capacity, with 53% based in Spain and 47% in the rest of the world.
