KKR clinches majority shareholding in Greenvolt
The US equity and asset management group Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR) will seal its deal to acquire 60.9% of the capital of Portugal’s renewables company Greenvolt at the end of this month.
The operation to acquire the shares from Greenvolt’s six main shareholders will be conducted through the KKR company GVK Omega after the conditions for an Offer of Public Acquisition or non-hostile takeover bid have been met.
In a communiqué published on the Portuguese securities supervisor CMVM website, the company led by João Manso Neto indicates that the “transfer of Greenvolt shares under the provisions of the Shares Purchase and Sales Contact should take place on May 31, 2204.”
It means that KKR will not have to pay any ‘ticking fee’ to the shareholders that would have been equal to an annual interest rate of 7% based on 360 calendar days applicable on the agreed purchase price.
A ticking fee is a fee imposed to compensate for lag time, effectively requiring the paying of interest on the cash portion of a deal during a certain commitment period, triggered by various conditions (often regulatory approval) and generally running until the deal’s closing.
The 60.9% of the company’s shares are being sold by the existing shareholders Actium Capital, Caderno Azul, Livrefluxo, Promendo Investimentos, V-Ridium Holding Limited, KWE Partners Ltd, and 1 Thing Investments.
In addition to this stake, the 15.55% share that Mediobanca – mandated by GVK Omega – bought in the market will have to be added and may be extended to 19.9% .
Greenvolt is still waiting for the green light from securities market entities in Ireland and Bulgaria, but now the company has informed the market that laws regarding overseas investment in Ireland and Bulgaria will not come into force until 31 May, 2024.
The KKR take-over bid for Greenvolt was launched on December 21, 2023, by the infrastructures investment fund Gamma Lux which is a KKR subsidiary operating out of Luxembourg, but a company was set up in Lisbon this year – GVK Omega – to carry out the operation.
Greenvolt – Energias Renováveis S.A. is one of the largest companies in Europe in large scale solar, wind and biomass segments. It is listed on the PSI120 which represents the largest Portuguese companies listed on the Euronext Lisbon stock market.
