Hindsight : Clean-Tech M&A Deals in 2009

In 2009, there were an estimated 505 clean-technology M&A transactions globally, totaling $31.8 billion, according to the Cleantech Group, a research firm based in San Francsico.  In North America, Europe and Israel, the number of clean technology M&A deals was up from 2008, but the total value of those transactions was down. In China, however, M&A activity in the sector was red hot.The country reached a historic high with 29 transactions totaling $5.5 billion. 

Summary	Acquiring Company	Target Company	M&A Type	Amount
Irish energy provider Bord Gáis completed the purchase of SWS Natural Resources, one of the largest wind generators in Ireland, in December 2009.	Bord Gais (Ireland)	SWS Natural Resources (Ireland)	Acquisition	$720 million
Norwegian energy companies Statkraft and StatoilHydro joined forces to develop a 315-megawatt, offshore wind farm off the coast of Norfolk in the UK. The wind farm will consist of 88 turbines and is planned to start production in 2011.	Statkraft (Norway)	StatoilHydro (Norway)	Divesture	$741 million
Germany1 Acquisitions Limited, a special purpose acquisition company, acquired 100% of the shares of AEG Power Solutions, a power company with a product line that includes solar inverters.	Germany1 Acquisitions Limited (Germany)	AEG Power Solutions (France)	Acquisition	$775 million
The Great Lakes Hydro Income Fund bought the Canadian renewable power generation assets of Brookfield Renewable Power. The portfolio includes 15 hydroelectric plants and a soon-to-be-constructed wind power project.	Great Lakes Hydro Income Fund (Canada)	Brookfield Renewable Power	Divesture	$809 million
France’s Suez Environment, a water and waste management company, acquired Barcelona, Spain-based water company Agbar. The deal makes Suez a leading player in Spain’s water sector.	Suez Environment (France)	Agbar (Spain)	Acquisition	$1.3 billion
Bunge, an agricultural company that supplies raw materials and services to the biofuels industry, entered into an agreement to become the 100% owner of Brazillian sugar producer Moem	Bunge (USA)	Moema (Brazil)	Acquisition	$1.4 billion
Swedish forestry and timber product company Södra and Norwegian energy company Statkraft signed a renewable energy agreement in the third quarter that initiates a range of investment projects and cooperative agreements in the energy sector, including the expansion of wind power activities and the supply of district heating, biofuels and electricity.	Statkraft (Norway)	Sodra (Sweden)	Joint Venture	$1.5 billion
Mainstream Renewable Power, a renewable energy company based in Ireland, acquired a portfolio of wind farm projects from Illinois wind farm developer FPC Services. The portfolio has a potential capacity of 787MW.	Mainstream Renewable Power (Ireland)	FPC Services (USA)	Divesture	$1.7 billion
Chinese power company GCL-Poly Energy Holdings acquired Jiangsu Zhongneng Polysilicon Technology Development, China's largest polysilicon and solar wafer maker.	GCL-Poly Energy Holdings (China)	Jiangsu Zhongneng Polysilicon Technology Development Co. (China)	Acquisition	$3.4 billion
Panasonic acquired a majority stake in Sanyo Electric., the world's largest rechargeable -battery maker. The takeover makes Panasonic a dominant player in the fast-growing market for hybrid car batteries.	Panasonic (Japan)	Sanyo Electric Co. (Japan)	Acquisition	$4.6 billion