The now globally operating Corporate Finance team was created out of Dr. Klein Wowi Finanz AG on 1 January 2020 and transferred to REM CAPITAL AG. The team is now an independent unit and comprises six Corporate Finance employees and four software developers.
The team has wide-ranging expertise, as it consists mainly of former corporate bankers and investment bankers, and advises in many sectors, and has already successfully supported several exciting projects. From the Hamburg Zoo to a rehabilitation clinic and one of the largest turbine manufacturers for wind power plants. “50 per cent of our clients are now from the renewable energies sector, and we advise them on a suitable financing structure or support them in their search for investors for wind or solar farms, and do it worldwide,” says Jan Bewarder, who founded the team about 2.5 years ago within Dr. Klein Firmenkunden AG and is now part of the Management Board of REM CAPITAL AG. Clients for these international projects are often project developers who need land and permits.
Employees from the team also explain that the renewable energies business in Germany is very standardised. “No one here will ever ask for help with financing, because there are core banks that handle this business. We can seldom provide any great added value,” says Project Manager Mattes Schäfer.
His colleague Gerrit Nemitz adds that this situation is somewhat different abroad, especially in countries with a precarious banking landscape. In these countries, however, you would rather give advice than finance.
Wind farm in Ghana
The team recently implemented an exciting project on the African continent: a wind farm in Ghana. Investments in renewable energies bring many benefits to countries like Ghana. “With just one wind farm of this size, we can supply electricity to 1.5 million inhabitants in Ghana – that’s about 220,000 households. But because the construction of a wind farm is expensive, the project must be financed for the next 20 years,” explains Maria Starke, Team and Project Manager Corporate Finance. “One of the first questions we ask ourselves is who owns the land. Because it is often privately owned or used for agriculture. In this case we have to look for a suitable solution and, if necessary, find alternative land for development and obtain all the permits. And these are usually issued by the government, as is the case in Ghana,” says Maria Starke, Team and Project Manager Corporate Finance, who has already been on-site twice.
However, until a contract is concluded, it can be a tense journey: In order to get the necessary government approval for the wind farm, the team organised a meeting with the vice president of Ghana, supported by the German Embassy. At short notice, the client of the wind farm and the Corporate Finance team were able to successfully present their project at the Presidential Palace – the project was approved by the vice president, and the necessary support was assured.
