Voltalia buys renewables services firm Greensolver

French renewables developer Voltalia has acquired solar and wind power services firm Greensolver.

The takeover will help the former strengthen its services to third party clients and firm up its position "as an integrated player in renewable energy across the value chain," according to a release.

Paris-headquartered Greensolver, on the other hand, will reportedly benefit from the larger company’s international presence, its centralised approach to equipment purchasing and engineering, and its technical and human resources.

Voltalia CEO Sébastien Clerc said: "The acquisition of Greensolver strengthens our offering in services to third-party clients, particularly in wind, as our services business has so far been primarily focused on solar.”

Voltalia claims to have more than 1GW of operational PV, biomass, wind, hydraulic and storage projects, and a further 7.1GW in development across 19 countries worldwide. Earlier this month, it announced an €80 million contract to build and maintain a 134MW solar project in Portugal owned by Swiss investor Smartenergy.

Greensolver provides technical, administrative and contractual services and has seen managed capacity double in the last three years, according to the release. The Paris-headquartered firm manages 95 PV and wind plants, with a combined capacity of 1.4GW, in nine European countries.

The services firm, which acquired UK asset manager ENTAP in April 2018, also provides consulting services, typically related to financial reviews, planning and monitoring of construction, and the optimisation of maintenance operations.

Voltalia currently employs 697 employees whereas Greensolver has 39.

The founding president of Greensolver Guy Auger will continue to lead the business.

Tags: greensolver, voltalia, mergers and acquisitions, acquisitions, france, europe, lss2020, largescale2020