Insolvent Abengoa awarded in court to Spain's Cox Energy

Spanish renewables group Cox Energy said on Tuesday it had been awarded the acquisition of the financially distressed compatriot Abengoa in bankruptcy court in Seville, southern Spain, after placing a bid of EUR 564 million (USD 617.6m).

Cox Energy’s bid is for all of Abengoa’s business areas and corporate operations, the group said. It includes EUR 206 million of debt and outstanding guarantees for Abengoa’s projects and EUR 252 million of project finance debt associated with other assets.

Cox Energy will not make any workforce adjustments, intending to keep all of Abengoa’s 9,505 employees active. It said it proved its commitment to the workers when it paid EUR 2.5 million in February to cover for their delayed wages.

Seville-based Abengoa, which once engineered and operated renewable energy plants and other infrastructure, has been under insolvency proceedings since last year. Cox Energy’s offer for Abengoa’s global businesses was chosen over bids presented by Urbas, Terramar/Nox Engineering Services and RCP, and others that sought specific projects of the company, Spanish business newspaper El Economista reported.

The transaction will require approval from creditor banks and also from the Spanish defence ministry, which needs to greenlight the transfer of Abengoa’s contract with state-owned shipbuilder Navantia to Cox Energy, according to El Economista.

(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.095)

Choose your newsletter by Renewables Now. Join for free!