MADRID, Spain: Arendals Fossekompani has entered into an agreement with European energy company MET Group for the sale of Cogen Energia, a news release said.

The agreement signed in Arendal and Madrid today, transfers full ownership of Cogen Energia from Arendals Fossekompani to MET Group.

The financial details are not disclosed, but Arendals Fossekompani expects to record a smaller profit. The sale of Cogen Energia is part of a strategic move on Arendals Fossekompani’s part, to exit all fossil fuel positions.

Fully owned by Arendals Fossekompani since 2011, Cogen Energia is recognized as a premier player in the Spanish cogeneration market. Cogen Energia’s cogeneration plants use surplus heat from gas-based electricity production to generate steam for industrial partners located nearby.

This results in higher energy efficiency and reduced CO2 emissions, as well as improved competitiveness for the industrial partners.

In 2020, Cogen Energia reported revenues of NOK 516 million and an EBITDA of NOK 46 million.

“We are saddened to part ways with an excellent team which has successfully maneuvered Cogen Energia in a rapidly changing landscape. Cogen Energia is well positioned for the next step, and we leave the company in the able hands of MET Group,” says Ørjan Svanevik, CEO of Arendals Fossekompani.

Even though combined heat and power production is a bridging technology on-route to a low-carbon society, it is not core business for Arendals Fossekompani.

Balancing and flexible energy production have become particularly important in the European power markets, as the increasing amount of intermittent renewable energy supply being fed into the grid makes matching power supply and demand ever more difficult. Technologies like CHP (combined heat and power) or CCGT (combined cycle gas turbine) plants are flexible and efficient solutions that help to balance the power grid.

With this transaction, MET Group will make its first sizeable investment in Spain’s CHP industry. MET’s competences in natural gas and gas-based power production allows the company to better lead the energy transition from fossil-fuels based to zero-carbon world.

Johannes Niemetz, CFO of MET Group commented on the acquisition: “Flexibility assets are an essential part of MET Group’s integrated strategy to support the global energy transition. We are looking at assets that we believe we can operate efficiently, creating synergies with our existing positions in the gas and power markets. MET’s core growth in flexibility assets will be in Spain, Italy, and the newly entered German market.”