Voltalia, the French renewable energy producer, has successfully acquired Martifer Solar, one of the world’s leading service providers to the solar photovoltaic (PV) market. Mott MacDonald supported the acquisition by acting as independent technical advisor.
The self-financed move is a major milestone in Voltalia’s diversification strategy. Martifer Solar’s portfolio of active engineering, procurement and construction projects and operation and maintenance schemes, plus its substantial development pipeline, rebalances Voltalia’s service offering in favour of solar energy, which is the fastest growing renewable energy sector. Voltalia’s geographical presence has also increased significantly as a result of the acquisition. Previously the group had offices in four countries, whereas it now has a presence across four continents, with teams in 17 countries and projects in 29.
Mott MacDonald performed technical due diligence of Martifer Solar at corporate and project levels, which provided the basis for structuring Voltalia’s formal acquisition offer. The consultancy worked closely with Voltalia to define a robust evaluation methodology for the technical, economic and overall performance of Martifer Solar’s project portfolio. This enabled Mott MacDonald to complete the assessment of Martifer Solar’s projects, which comprise 1,343MW of projects under development, 85MW under construction and 585MW at operational level, according to the challenging schedule of the acquisition timeline.
Johana Trujillo, Mott MacDonald’s solar programme director, said: “This acquisition involved the review of over 50 projects at various stages and in different locations across Europe, Africa, Asia and Latin America. Our team of solar specialists made the most of our global presence and direct experience in merger and acquisitions to support this transaction, which we are certain will bring an even stronger player to the global solar PV market.”