Engyco mulls IPO as means of funding European solar farm acquisition drive

Newly-minted solar energy firm Engyco is reportedly considering going straight to the stock market as it attempts to raise cash to underpin its ambitious plans to buy up solar power projects across Europe.

The company – which boasts industry veteran Alexander Voigt, the founder of German solar firms Solon and Q-Cells, as its executive vice chairman - said over the weekend that it was investigating a number of different routes for raising finance including "a listing of the company's shares on a recognised stock exchange".

The Independent on Sunday reported that if it did go ahead with an IPO it would be seeking to raise around €1bn (£0.87bn).

The recently-founded company is based on the Channel Island of Jersey, and has set itself the ambitious goal of creating the "first industrial-scale pure play downstream solar utility company" by snapping up large-scale solar projects across Europe.

The company said that it initially plans to acquire up to 300MW of existing solar parks in Spain, before expanding into other Southern European markets with feed-in tariffs, at which point it will also consider new development opportunities. It added that it was aiming to have acquired €3bn of assets within three years, establishing itself as one of the world's largest solar utilities.

The company's plans are highly ambitious, but it has brought together an impressive management team with plenty of experience in both the renewable energy sector and corporate mergers and acquisitions. Most notably, Ian Rosen who helped build one of Spain's largest solar energy portfolios while serving as head of renewable energy investment at Banque AIG, has been appointed chief executive and has been joined by several members of his previous team at the bank.

In related news, US solar energy firm First Solar is continuing with its mission to establish a similar utility-scale solar giant on the other side of the Atlantic, announcing that it has completed the acquisition of a chunk of Edison Mission Group's (EMG) solar project development pipeline.

The company confirmed last week that it has shelled out an undisclosed sum to purchase several utility-scale solar projects in California and the Southwest, with capacities ranging from 20MW to 150MW. The deal underscores First Solar's strategy of establishing itself as both a manufacturer of thin film solar cells and an operator of large-scale solar installations.

"Acquiring the EMG development pipeline extends First Solar's leadership in the US utility market," said Lisa Bodensteiner, First Solar vice president of business development for North America. "It builds on our strategy to cultivate robust and predictable module demand in utility-scale applications."