Porsche AG (P911.DE) is reportedly thinking about buying shares in Varta AG (VAR1.DE), the struggling German battery maker, which is looking at alternatives to restructure its debt.
Porsche Considering Buying A Stake In Varta
Bloomberg reported that, according to anonymous sources, Porsche is looking at purchasing a majority share in Varta’s e-mobility segment, underpinned by a minority holding in the overall company. According to Bloomberg, Porsche indicated that it is keeping avenues open to “keep this key technology in Germany”.
Porsche has allegedly been investigating battery strategies, such as the production of high-performance energy sources through Cellforce, to support the plans of Volkswagen AG (VOW3.DE), its parent company. In 2023, Porsche also divulged plans to establish a €3.3bn facility for this purpose.
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On Sunday 21 July 2024, Varta said that it was presently reviewing two financial restructuring proposals. This includes Porsche’s bid and those of other investors. The company said that all viable restructuring plans revolve around multi-million-euro investments. These proposals mean that Varta would be delisted from the public market and some debts would be tempered. Just before 5pm (GMT+2) on Monday 22 July 2024, Varta’s shares were down more than 70%.
Founded in 1887, Varta today has roughly 4,200 employees on its roster. It once again entered into negotiations with its creditors after debt restructuring problems in 2023. The company continues to struggle under a drop in demand. Varta also took a hit with the IT outage that occurred on Friday 19 July 2024.
