Germany's RWE buys Con Edison renewable portfolio for $6.8 billion

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The deal will be partly funded via a $2.43 billion convertible bond issued to a unit of Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) through which the fund will become a 9.1% shareholder in RWE.

The transaction will nearly double RWE’s U.S. renewables portfolio to more than 7 gigawatts (GW) and grow its regional project pipeline by 7 GW to more than 24 GW.

The transaction, which is expected to close in the first half of 2023, will make RWE the fourth-largest renewables player in the U.S. market, which plays a key role in the company’s green expansion.

“Our equity capital measure is the basis for financing the acquisition of Con Edison CEB and of the additional green growth in the years to come,” RWE Chief Executive Markus Krebber said.

“I am delighted that QIA is supporting RWE’s accelerated growth ambitions with their capital commitment.”

The deal, the biggest for RWE since the breakup of former division Innogy announced in 2018, will be earnings accretive right away, giving RWE additional core earnings (EBITDA) of $600 million a year.

It comes neearly a year after RWE fleshed out its global renewables roadmap, which includes 50 billion euros ($49 billion) of gross investments by 2030, with 15 billion earmarked for the United States.

RWE, which confirmed plans to pay a dividend of 0.90 euro per share for 2022, will primarily boost its U.S. solar portfolio and pipeline as part of the deal.

($1 = 1.0205 euros)