Eni green unit Plenitude valued at $11bn after sale of minority stake
Sale of stake in Plenitude was pushed back last year due to volatile market conditions
Italian oil major Eni has sold a minority stake in its renewables and power offshoot Plenitude for $770m, a deal that puts an $11bn price tag on the unit as a whole.
Eni sold the 9% stake to Swiss fund Energy Infrastructure Partners (EIP), it was announced today (Thursday).
Plenitude said the deal values its "post-entry equity" at around €8bn ($8.8bn). Considering its debt, the unit said its "implied enterprise value" post transaction is over €10bn ($11bn).
“We have achieved an excellent transaction,” said Claudio Descalzi, Eni CEO.
“Thanks to it we highlight the value of Plenitude within Eni; we strengthen Plenitude’s financial structure to further support its energy transition and growth path; and we establish a long-term partnership with a leading international financial investor capable of contributing to Plenitude's value creation.”
Eni had been planning to stage an IPO for Plenitude in the second half of last year after rapidly increasing its installed renewables capacity with investments such as the Corazon and Brazoria solar photovoltaic projects in the US and the Fortore Energia wind farm in Italy.
Plenitude said the deal will support its growth in green energy, as well as the sale of energy efficiency solutions and the deployment of charging infrastructure for electric mobility in Europe.
Plenitude is active in 15 countries across with a green energy capacity of 3GW, which it is hoping to boost to more than 7GW by 2026. The company has an interest in the 3.6GW Dogger Bank UK offshore wind project via Vargronn, its Norway-based joint venture with Hitec Vision.
Roland Dörig, EIP founder and managing partner said: “We are excited to work with Plenitude as a partner to continue building on its impressive growth story and supporting its value creation for all stakeholders while contributing to the global energy transition.”
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