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TotalEnergies is in advanced talks to acquire the German renewables firm VSB in EUR 2 bn deal, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Talks with VSB owner the Swiss private equity company Partners Group Holding are maturing quickly and an announcement could be made in the coming days, but a final agreement could take longer, the sources said. VSB is project management and services company mainly in the renewable energy sector, with projects in solar, hydro and wind across Europe. The sale is part of a larger pivot by Partners Group to raise USD 5 bn by selling some of its infrastructure assets, Bloomberg said.
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Total has been on a renewables roll: Last month, the company snapped 50% stakes in two german offshore wind projects. It also secured two leases of offshore projects in the North and Baltic seas valued at EUR 5.8 bn, and also bought Germany’s renewable player Quadra Energy last year, Bloomberg reported.
In our region as well: In October alone, the company agreed to partner with QatarEnergy to develop a 1.25 GW solar power project in Iraq as part of the country’s Gas Growth Integrated Project and partnered with UAE-based polyurethane insulation solutions company Pearl Group to install solar PV systems at three of its production facilities in Dubai. Total was also shortlisted as part of a consortium to develop one of four solar projects in Saudi Arabia, and signed an agreement to explore a major renewable hydrogen and ammonia project in Morocco.
Barbados joins list of nations seizing on debt swap, unlocking USD 165 mn in funding, Reuters reported. The debt swap will see the country put money into food security and upgrades of water and sewage plants to shield them against climate-induced risks. The deal is the first among the emerging instrument of debt swaps to direct money into climate resilience projects, rather than traditional nature conservation projects.
The details: The arrangement saw Barbados buy back USD 293.3 mn of domestic bonds using a sustainability-linked, low-interest USD 297 bn loan from a consortium of banks including the Caribbean unit of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC), and Barbados’ Scotiabank and RBC Royal Bank. With an interest rate as low as 3.25%, a USD 40 mn grant from the Green Climate Fund (CIF), and the backing of upfront loans of USD 70 mn from the Inter-American Development Bank and GCF, the country unlocked a total funding of USD 165 mn— USD 125 mn from savings plus USD 40 mn from GCF grant — for climate resilience projects. The government would be penalized if it does not meet the project’s targets, which include water quality and quantity from the plant.
This is Barbados’ second swap: In 2022, the country closed a USD 150 mn debt swap that freed up USD 50 mn for marine conservation projects. The swap was backed by a 15-year blue loan backed by Credit Suisse and CIBC First Caribbean.
Germany to take on over EUR 600 mn of Northvolt’s debt: Germany’s government will support Europe’s embattled battery maker Northvolt, foregoing the company’s EUR 600 bn debt to the nation’s development bank KfW, a spokesman for Germany’s economy ministry told Bloomberg. The government will reimburse the bank this month, with Schleswig-Holstein state and the federal government each covering EUR 300 mn.
US continues ramping up clean energy manufacturing: The US Department of Energy (DOE) is extending a USD 7.54 bn conditional loan to Stellanis and Samsung SDI’s JV StarPlus Energy to finance the construction of two lithium-ion battery cell and module manufacturing plants in Indiana, Reuters reported earlier this week. The project aims to produce 67 GWh of batteries annually at peak capacity, enough to power approximately 670k EVs and displace 260.3 mn gallons of oil annually.
Crucial for Stellantis: The major US automotive player, which also makes Peugeot, Fiat, Jeep, and others, is attempting to make a late breakthrough into the EVs market. The company’s global sales fell 27% y-o-y in 3Q.
What now? StarPlus needs to finalize community consultation and show it meets a bunch of technical, financial, and environmental requirements for the financing commitment to become final. It is not clear whether the company will be able to power through the requirements before Trump’s inauguration on 20 January. Biden administration officials suggested the commitment would be binding. “When funds are obligated, they are protected … They are subject to the terms of the contract, so when those contracts are signed and executed, this becomes a matter of contract law more than a matter of politics,” Biden’s climate advisor John Podesta told Reuters.
