Enercon to move focus to intl markets, plans JV with EWE

Germany’s Enercon GmbH has obtained long-term debt to support its operational turnaround plan that will give priority to international wind markets rather than the domestic sector.

Enercon has decided to refocus its operations after activity in the German onshore wind sector collapsed, it said on Thursday. While the development, sales and services of onshore wind turbines will remain its core business area, the company will still own power generation assets and produce and market electricity.

These activities, however, will be transferred to a new company that will potentially be an entity formed together with German utility EWE AG. A letter of intent (LoI) for a joint venture (JV) is already in place.

The financing from the company’s lenders and shareholder Aloys Wobben Foundation includes an existing debt facility and a new guarantee line that will enable Enercon to provide guarantees needed in foreign countries for large-scale onshore wind projects. The financing agreement will initially be valid until end-2023.

"The agreement gives us the planning security we need to successfully implement the operational turnaround," said chief financial officer Thomas Cobet. He added that the deal is also expected to normalise Enercon’s relationship with its suppliers and stabilise project financing.

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