VNG subsidiary BALANCE Erneuerbare Energien acquires two GASAG AG biogas facilities in Brandenburg

08/17/2020 - 12:00

BALANCE Erneuerbare Energien GmbH

Facilities in Schwedt/Oder add a further 12 MW rated thermal input to the biogas portfolio

The wholly owned VNG subsidiary BALANCE Erneuerbare Energien GmbH (BALANCE) has acquired GASAG Bio-Erdgas Schwedt GmbH, a wholly owned subsidiary of GASAG AG. The related Schwedt I and Schwedt II facilities are in Schwedt/Oder in north-eastern Brandenburg (district of Uckermark) and have total rated thermal input of about twelve megawatts (MWFWL).

Leipzig-based BALANCE has reached agreement with the previous shareholder to take over the facilities and on-site operating personnel. The parties have agreed not to disclose the purchase price. With this acquisition, BALANCE now has a portfolio of 32 facilities in northern and eastern Germany with total output of about 118 MWFWL. This makes the company one of the leading biogas producers in Germany.

“I am very pleased that BALANCE has taken a further step along its ambitious growth path. With the acquisition of the Schwedt facility location we have a real flagship in our biogas portfolio,” says Hans-Joachim Polk, member of the Executive Board of VNG. “The location in Brandenburg will be one of the biggest in the BALANCE portfolio and hence will make a significant contribution to achieving our growth strategy in terms of green gases.”

GASAG board member Matthias Trunk explains: “We decided to proceed with the sale due to changed economic and legal conditions on the biogas market. We are happy that our facilities are in the hands of a company specialised in the production of biogas and will work together with BALANCE into the future as a partner in the purchase of biogas. When building our renewable capacity we will focus on the development of wind farms and open space photovoltaic units.”

Schwedt I is a biogas upgrading facility with capacity of 700 standard cubic metres per hour (Nm³/h). Schwedt II is a power plant that is compliant with the German Renewable Energy Act, with total installed capacity of 2,760 kilowatts electric (kWel). With this acquisition, the VNG Group is underlining the ambitions set out in its ‘VNG 2030+’ strategy to take on a key role in the value chain for climate-neutral gases. “As part of our growth in recent months, I want to stress how important regional added value is, in addition to facility operation. BALANCE does not only invest in facility concepts, it also develops these further in each regional context through constant optimisation processes,” explains BALANCE Managing Director Thomas Fritsch.

ABOUT BALANCE

BALANCE is one of the leading operators of biogas plants in Germany. The company was founded in 2006 and currently operates 42 biogas facilities in Northern and Eastern Germany with a total rated thermal output of approx.192 MW_FTC. BALANCE is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Leipzig-based VNG AG, a Group specialising in gas and gas infrastructure with over 20 companies operating throughout Europe. It supplies approximately 123,000 households with climate-friendly energy. More at www.balance-vng.de.