Italian energy producer and distributor Enel ‘short-listing bidders’ for a stake in Australian operations

Bidders for the portfolio of smart meters include Singapore’s Keppel Infrastructure, QIC and Morrison & Co.

Italian electricity and gas manufacturer and distributor Enel is thought to be short-listing bidders this week for a stake in its Australian operations.

Among the interested parties for the Enel Green Power renewable energy portfolio in Australia has been John Laing, owned by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, but it is understood to have not lobbed an offer.

Credit Suisse is running a sale process where first-round bids were due last month.

On offer is a major stake in Enel’s Australian portfolio that is understood to be worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

The proceeds will be used to fund its development pipeline.

Enel Group has the Bungala 1 & 2 solar plants in South Australia that were developed in conjunction with the Dutch Infrastructure Fund. They have offtake agreements in place with Origin Energy.

In total, the Enel assets produce 309MW. The Bungala 1 & 2 solar projects produce 137.7MW and 137.5MW respectively and its Cohun solar farm in Victoria operates with 34MW capacity.

Globally, Enel manages more than 1200 power plants on five continents. It has assets in operation or under construction in about 21 countries.

The sale process is heating up as the Vector Metering process is now under way and first-round bids are due at the end of this month.

Bidders for the portfolio of smart meters include Singapore’s Keppel Infrastructure, advised by Jarden, QIC, advised by Craigs, and Morrison & Co.

Vector Metering is owned by New Zealand electricity and gas company Vector and generated $NZ172m of earnings for the 2021 financial year.

The business is thought to be worth about $NZ3bn.