Swiss-based energy company MET Group is growing its European portfolio by entering the German renewables market, with a 100% stake acquisition in a solar development project.

At the end of 2022, MET Group announced a similar transaction in Romania, namely the takeover of a project for a photovoltaic park located near Bucharest, the company thus entering the local segment of green energy production.

MET Group completed the purchase of a 100% stake in the Kentzlin photovoltaic project, developed by project developer Emeren Germany GmbH. The solar plant, once completed, will have an installed capacity of 11.5 MWp and an energy production of approximately 13 GWh per year, corresponding to the average annual consumption of 3.600 German households.

Located in the state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, the project reached ready-to-build status by mid of July. The solar power plant is expected to start commercial operations in the second half of 2024.

MET Group is an established player in the German natural gas and electricity market. In recent years, MET has acquired 3.4 TWh of underground gas storage facilities, secured LNG regassification capacity, opened a local supply subsidiary and is rapidly growing its sales activities to municipal utilities, industrial customers and, most recently, households. MET’s entry into the renewables market is a further step to expanding the Group’s activities in Germany.

“The Kentzlin project fits well into MET’s strategic vision to enter the highly competitive German renewables market, as well as to further expand its renewables portfolio across Europe and particularly in Western Europe,” said Christian Hürlimann, Renewables CEO of MET Group.

MET Group’s renewables expansion strategy aims to reach a 2 GW installed capacity portfolio by 2026, thus playing an active role in the European energy transition. In 2022, MET was able to enter the renewables market in four new countries, with acquisitions in Spain, Italy, Poland and Romania.

In Romania, MET signed an agreement for the acquisition of a company that owns the rights in a 52 MWp photovoltaic project. The project can reach an energy production of 82 GWh per year – equivalent to the annual consumption of 50,000 households. The photovoltaic park will be located in southern Romania, near Bucharest, and will become operational in 2024.