Quadran, which employs 200 people, owns and operates renewable projects and the transaction covers onshore wind farms, solar farms, hydropower and biogas plants in France and overseas.
At the end of last year, Quadran had an installed capacity of more than 360MW and is expected to increase to about 800MW by next year end.
Direct Energie has agreed to pay €303m for the acquisition and it includes an earn-out of €113m related to the pace at which new commissioning until mid-2019.
After adjusting for the price of the projects that will come online this year, the acquisition price is expected to increase to €344m. The projects that are coming online amount to 185MW.
The cash part of the transaction stands at €328m, out of which €25m will be paid in the first half of next year. It will be combined by issuing 327,428 new Direct Energie shares at the unit price of €49.205 or 0.79% of the share capital after issue, fully paid up in favour of Lucia Holding for €16m.
The acquisition, which is part of Direct Energie's vertical integration strategy, is expected to strengthen its presence in power generation.
It is also expected to contribute to Direct Energie's aim of building an integrated player with a diversified and balanced production mix.
Direct Energie chairman and CEO Xavier Caïtucoli said: "All employees of Direct Energie are delighted to welcome Quadran's teams. This acquisition demonstrates the Group's ability to carry out ambitious growth projects.
“In an increasingly competitive market, the Group has all the required strengths to continue its development along the whole value chain, and to establish itself as the leading alternative player with the aim of delivering 4 million customer sites by 2020."
Image: The acquisition brings more than 500MW of renewable portfolio to Direct Energie. Photo: Courtesy of kongsky/FreeDigitalPhotos.net.
