November 7, 2024

Newsletter Nov. 2024

2024/11

Solving key challenges of the climate transition through private capital

The third quarter of 2024 was marked by the completion of five transactions and the integration of add-on acquisitions across all our platforms. This newsletter highlights two pivotal themes in the energy transition that Vidia is strategically focusing on: advancing the wind energy sector and addressing the skilled worker shortage, a critical bottleneck in the energy transition.

The acquisition of neowa GmbH, a leading provider of wind power decommissioning services for repowering projects in Germany, strengthens our existing wind services platform anchored to Vento. Both Vento and neowa ensure a skilled workforce is available to meet the ambitious goals for wind turbine installation, decommissioning, and repowering. In this edition, we explore how decommissioning and repowering are crucial to enabling new wind power capacity.

The shortage of skilled workers, however, is a growing obstacle across industries. To address this, Vidia has made strategic investments in platforms that provide skilled labor for climate solution services, ranging from industrial energy efficiency and solar installation to the wind power value chain. The private sector can play a vital role in enhancing workforce productivity by leveraging scale and specialized expertise. Germany, with its extensive technical engineering expertise, is well-positioned to take the lead in global climate solutions. However, fully capitalizing on this potential will require both financial investment and a well-planned approach to overcome the skilled labor shortage.

We are excited to announce the upcoming release of Vidia’s inaugural Portfolio Impact Review Report. This report goes beyond traditional KPI reporting, providing an in-depth explanation of our strategy, quantitative impact return approach, and measurement framework. By sharing our best practices, we aim to contribute to the private equity industry to do our part in driving meaningful change. 

Thank you for being part of our mission. Wishing you a strong and successful finish to the year!

Johanna Struthmann
Founder

 

Vidia Blog

Vidia impact perspective: Repowering projects and the wind power value chain

In a July blog post, we outlined a simplified overview of the wind power value chain. However, it’s essential to distinguish between greenfield and repowering projects. In repowering initiatives, the decommissioning of existing wind turbine generators (WTGs) at their end-of-life (EoL) is often overlooked, despite it being a vital step in facilitating the addition of new wind power capacity. In this article, we explore the key role that WTG decommissioning plays in the growth of wind energy through repowering projects.

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Vidia impact perspective:
The skilled worker shortage in decarbonization

Advancements in technology and decreasing costs in wind and solar power are driving a rapid transition from fossil fuels to a low-carbon energy system. However, to meet the targets set out in the Paris Agreement, the deployment of climate technologies must accelerate well beyond the current rates. The European Union – especially Germany – is facing a significant shortage of skilled workers, presenting a major challenge to achieving its ambitious climate goals. This article examines the scale and underlying causes of this issue, while exploring potential solutions.

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New Joiner Alert​

Theresa Hoefer
Finance Manager

Theresa has gained extensive experience in the Audit and Financial Reporting department of KPMG, where she gained valuable experience in auditing investment fund structures. 

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Michael Brand
Investment Director

Michael brings a wealth of experience from his time at Maxburg Capital Partners, where he successfully acquired and developed companies across multiple sectors. Before that, he honed his expertise as an investment banker at Credit Suisse.

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Investment Criteria 

We look for leading companies with a proven business model offering climate positive products or services.

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We are hiring 

We are actively searching for additions to our investment, impact and operations teams, plus roles in HR, finance and investor relations.

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