Enel Said to Weigh Sale of €2 Billion Energy Storage Business – EQ Mag

Enel Spa is considering selling a majority stake in its energy storage business in a move aimed at further reducing the company’s debt burden. Bloomberg writes this, citing unnamed sources briefed on the deal.

Enel, Bloomberg points out, has received non-binding offers for an 80 percent stake in the project, worth about EUR2 billion. Under the plan, Enel would seek to retain about 20 percent to ensure governance of the unit, said the sources, who asked not to be named as this was confidential information.

“A successful deal could help accelerate the company’s debt reduction,” the news outlet further wrote.

Enel has already begun selling EUR21 billion in assets to reduce its debt, which reached record levels last year as it expanded outside Italy.

The company has aimed to reduce debt to between EUR51 billion and EUR52 billion by the end of this year, from around EUR60 billion by the end of 2022, in a plan that includes selling assets in Latin America and Europe to focus on core markets.

Enel, Bloomberg further writes, “has begun working with advisers on the sale of the storage unit, which is attracting interest from infrastructure funds.”

The project for sale employs industrial-scale batteries to store energy produced from renewable sources that will then be fed into the national power grid. It was set up to help meet commitments for electrical capacity as Enel plans to install new capacity in storage systems, the company said.

An Enel representative, Bloomberg further points out, would not comment on the news.

Enel on Monday closed 0.4 percent in the red at EUR5.60 per share.

Source: Bloomberg