Amsterdam-based Return, an energy transition platform, announced on Thursday that it has acquired a majority stake in Hamburg-based J&P Batterie Projekte with a €50M investment and commitment.
The announcement comes as the Dutch company aims to expand its renewable energy market in Germany.
What does this acquisition solve?
Storage is the bottleneck of the energy transition and poses a challenge for developers and investors in terms of contributing to the European Net Zero Emissions by 2050 target.
Together, Return and J&P will develop, finance, own, and operate a substantial project portfolio, leveraging the experience of Return which currently operates 70 MW (150 MWh) of operational assets and 450 MW (1,700 MWh) of Ready-to-Build projects.
The new partnership will solidify Returns’ position in European energy storage.
This partnership expands the Dutch company’ current position in Munich through its fully-owned platform SemperPower.
Currently, SemperPower has over 3 Gigawatts of advanced projects under development in Germany spanning multiple (types of) grid operators.
Founded by Jens Peters and Philipp Jebens, J&P has a pipeline of over 4 Gigawatt of storage projects to accelerate energy storage development throughout Europe.
Philipp Jebens, Managing Director of J&P, says, ”We strongly believe in the critical need for flexibility in Germany’s energy landscape and began our developments several years ago. This new investment and our collaboration with Return put us in a unique position to become a key partner for high-voltage grid operators and parties seeking to enhance flexibility in their portfolios.”
Return: Energy transition investment & build
Return is an energy transition investment & build a platform that combines entrepreneurial developers, with institutional capital, capabilities, and operational expertise.
The company has successfully established Sunrock, a leading player in rooftop solar in Europe, and backed Vandebron, the largest independent green electricity supplier in the Netherlands.
Through its portfolio companies, including SemperPower, Lion Storage, and J&P, Return aims to be at the forefront of developing and operating large-scale battery energy storage systems across Europe.
The Dutch company raised a €100M investment round in late 2023, which it used to invest in partnerships with developers and back renewable projects.
Willem-Jan Schutte, CEO of Return, says, “This investment represents a significant step forward in our mission to become the leading flexibility provider in Europe. We are proud and happy to share that we have started this exciting cooperation with J&P.”
“By working together with Jens Peters and Philipp Jebens, combining expertise and resources with strategically chosen challengers in the energy market, we will be able to drive necessary energy storage development in Germany,” adds Schutte.
