Conergy Canada Among the Operations Taken Over by Kawa

Kawa Capital Management, a U.S. private equity and hedge fund manager, has purchased for an undisclosed price the global subsidiaries of German solar energy company Conergy AG. As part of a two-step takeover process, Kawa will immediately acquire Conergy operations in Canada, the United States, Singapore and Thailand due to the increased financing requirements of these operations. Other Conergy assets are expected to be acquired later this year. The Canadian regional headquarters of Conergy Americas is in Edmonton, Alberta.

PRESS RELEASE

Kawa acquires global Conergy subsidiaries in two-step procedure

Kawa immediately acquires Conergy subsidiaries in the USA, Canada, Singapore and Thailand in a first step

Continuously strong order book for the construction of large-scale power plants leading to increased financing needs

Conergy CEO Dr. Philip Comberg: “Kawa is taking on responsibility as new investor and ensures implementation of new projects with its financing.”

Kawa Partner Andrew de Pass: “We are committed to the Conergy acquisitions and are working towards completing the transaction regarding the remaining global Conergy units until early October.”

Hamburg / Miami, 29 August 2013 – The U.S. financial investor Kawa Capital Management, Inc. (“Kawa”) takes over global Conergy subsidiaries in a two-step procedure. Kawa acquires the Conergy sales units in the USA, Canada, Singapore and Thailand with immediate effect. This is due to the increased financing requirements of these subsidiaries caused by the continuously strong order book for the construction of large-scale power plants. The brand “Conergy”, the remaining global sales units as well as the associated necessary administrative, management and infrastructure functions of Conergy AG will continue to operate in the current structure for the time being. Kawa is working towards closing the second step acquisitions of these remaining Conergy units by early October 2013 the latest, subject to conclusion of the relevant agreements.

CEO Dr. Philip Comberg: “Kawa is taking on responsibility as new investor.”
“Kawa is taking on responsibility as new investor and with its financing ensures the implementation of new projects. This shows the strong commitment and determination of our new partner,” said Conergy CEO Dr. Philip Comberg. “We are working on a number of large-scale projects in North America and Asia. With the construction progress the financing needs have increased as expected. In recent weeks we have focused on ensuring the necessary funding for these projects. We have been working hard on a solution: The first step in the two-step procedure for the planned transfer of all global sales units has been implemented now.”

Kawa Partner Andrew de Pass: “We are working towards finalizing the planned transaction as early as possible.”
“Kawa and Conergy are a perfect fit and the takeover enables us to create a globally unique market player. We are committed to the Conergy takeover and are working towards closing the planned acquisitions of the remaining Conergy units in a second step by early October,” said Kawa Partner Andrew de Pass. “We are currently intensively working on the transaction documentation as well as the employee structure.”

Dr. Undritz: “Negotiations show Kawa’s professionalism and strong determination.”
“We are very satisfied with the course of the negotiations,” said Conergy’s preliminary insolvency administrator Dr. Sven-Holger Undritz of the Hamburg law firm White & Case. “Only a small number of companies have been able to present an investor only two weeks after an insolvency application. The fact that we have quickly found a solution to tackle the increased financing requirements of the subsidiaries proves Kawa’s professionalism and commitment to successfully complete the acquisition as early as possible and responsibly further promote the business. This is a great success, especially as we are also in promising talks with potential investors for the production subsidiaries.”

Kawa was presented as investor by the Conergy Management Board and the preliminary insolvency administrator Dr. Sven-Holger Undritz in July, only two weeks after the insolvency application of Conergy AG. Kawa plans to acquire the global Conergy sales and service companies with approximately 400 employees. These are not affected by the insolvency proceedings and continue to operate normally. From the insolvent Conergy AG with about 200 employees, Kawa plans to take over a significant number of the employees and corporate functions in Hamburg and Zweibrücken, subject to completion of final agreements. This includes the infrastructure functions and “Conergy” brand. The salaries of the employees of the companies affected by the insolvency are protected by insolvency payments until the end of September 2013.

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