MET Renewables seeks antitrust nod to acquire Eolica Bulgaria

Bulgaria's competition regulator said on Tuesday that MET Renewables Holding, part of Swiss energy company MET Group, is seeking approval to acquire wind power company Eolica Bulgaria, the owner and operator of a 60 megawatt (MW) wind park in Suvorovo, in the northeast of the country.

The deal is expected to affect the Bulgarian market for production and trade in electricity, the antitrust body said in a statement published on its profile last week.

Interested parties have until September 16 to file with the competition authority their statements regarding the transaction.

Eolica Bulgaria is a Bulgaria-based branch of Spanish renewable energy group Enhol. Established in 2004, it is mainly active in project management in the fields of research, construction and exploitation of renewable energy sources. The company started several wind farm projects in Bulgaria in 2004, including Suvorovo wind farm. The construction of Suvorovo wind farm was completed in 2011, making it the company's first wind farm in Bulgaria, according to information on its website.

Earlier this month, MET Group said that it has acquired a 100% stake in Suvorovo wind park from Enhol for an undisclosed price. With this acquisition MET will expand its operating wind portfolio in Bulgaria to 102 MW, the Swiss company added.

The transaction is expected to be wrapped up in the third quarter of 2021, the buyer also said.

Suvorovo wind park consists of 30 turbines of 2 MW capacity each and generates around 120 GWh of electricity per year. The facility, representing 8.5% of Bulgaria's total installed wind capacity and supplies electricity equivalent to the consumption of around 38,000 households.

In January, MET Group said that it completed the acquisition of 100% of Enel Green Power Bulgaria, owner of the 42 MW Black Sea wind park in northeastern Bulgaria, from Italy's Enel Green Power.

MET is present in 14 countries through subsidiaries, 25 national gas markets and 22 international trading hubs.

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