PowAR to acquire the Australian business of Tilt Renewables, while Mercury NZ will acquire the New Zealand business

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PowAR and Mercury NZ to acquire Tilt Renewables for $2.1bn. (Credit: VIVIANE MONCONDUIT from Pixabay)

New Zealand-based Tilt Renewables has agreed to be acquired by a consortium of Powering Australian Renewables (PowAR) and Mercury NZ for about NZD2.95bn ($2.12bn).

In this regard, the renewable energy company has entered into a scheme implementation agreement (SIA) with the consortium.

PowAR is a partnership between AGL Energy and Queensland Investment Corporation (QIC), while Mercury NZ is a New Zealand-based electricity generation and electricity retailing company.

Under the SIA, PowAR will effectively acquire the Australian business of Tilt Renewables. On the other hand, Mercury NZ will acquire the company’s New Zealand business.

Under a scheme of arrangement, Tilt Renewables’ shareholders will be paid NZD7.8 ($5.6) per share in cash.

According to Tilt Renewables, it has entered into the SIA after a competitive sale process during which it claims to have got various binding proposals for its acquisition.

Tilt Renewables chair Bruce Harker said: “This compelling acquisition proposal is a result of Tilt Renewables’ constant focus on delivering long‐term value for shareholders and the Board is pleased that, with these new owners, the transition to renewables in Australia and New Zealand will continue to accelerate.”

In December 2020, Infratil, which holds a 65.5% stake in Tilt Renewables, announced a strategic review of its ownership in the renewable energy company. This included potential sale of the stake.

At that time, the New Zealand-based energy and transport infrastructure company turned down a revised takeover bid of $3.78bn or NZ$7.43 ($5.34) per share from AustralianSuper.

Infratil has said that it is supporting the acquisition proposal for Tilt Renewables from PowAR and Mercury NZ. The company has entered into a binding voting deed with PowAR, in this connection.

Mercury NZ, which is currently the second largest shareholder of the renewable energy company with a 19.92% stake, has agreed to vote its entire shareholding in support of the scheme.

Tilt Renewables CEO Deion Campbell said: “With the support of our shareholders, we have developed and delivered a portfolio of flagship renewable assets, grown our industry‐leading development pipeline and made a lasting positive impact on the communities in which we operate.

“I am excited by the next chapter in our history with PowAR and Mercury, which will be an acceleration of our shared vision: to drive the transition to renewables through everything we do.”

The scheme will be subject to customary conditions, certain regulatory approvals, shareholder approval, and also approval from the New Zealand High Court.