Public delisting tender offer by Südzucker AG announced
Mannheim, 19 December 2023 – Today, the Executive Board of CropEnergies AG, Mannheim, (ISIN DE000A0LAUP1) and the Executive Board of Südzucker AG, Mannheim, (ISIN DE0007297004) signed, with the consent of their respective supervisory boards, a delisting agreement. On this basis, Südzucker AG has undertaken to offer to the shareholders of CropEnergies AG, in connection with an unconditional delisting tender offer pursuant to section 10 of the German Securities Acquisition and Takeover Act (WpÜG) and section 39 of the German Stock Exchange Act (BörsG), to acquire all shares of CropEnergies AG not yet held by Südzucker AG for a cash consideration of EUR 11.50 per tendered share. Südzucker AG currently holds approx. 69.19 percent of the shares in CropEnergies AG.
CropEnergies AG has undertaken – subject to a closer review of the offer document to be published by Südzucker AG and considering statutory requirements – to submit an application for revocation of the admission of the shares of CropEnergies AG to trading on the regulated market of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange during the acceptance period for the delisting tender offer and to support the delisting tender offer. The Executive Board and Supervisory Board of CropEnergies AG will issue a reasoned statement on the delisting tender offer pursuant to Section 27 of the German Securities Acquisition and Takeover Act (WpÜG).
The management board of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange will decide on the application for revocation of the admission of the shares on the regulated market. Once the revocation has taken effect, the shares of CropEnergies AG will no longer be admitted to trading or traded on a domestic regulated market or a comparable market abroad.
In today’s board meeting, the Supervisory Board of Südzucker AG appointed Dr Stephan Meeder, CEO and CFO of CropEnergies AG, as a member of the Executive Board of Südzucker AG with immediate effect. In due course, Stephan Meeder will withdraw as CEO and CFO of CropEnergies AG. Stephan Meeder is expected to remain a member of the Executive Board of CropEnergies AG until 29 February 2024, but no longer than 31 May 2024.
CropEnergies AG
Founded in Mannheim in 2006, the member of the Südzucker Group is the leading European producer of renewable ethanol. With a production capacity of 1.3 million m3 of ethanol per year, CropEnergies produces neutral alcohol as well as technical alcohol (ethanol) for a wide range of applications at locations in Germany, Belgium, the UK, and France: Sustainably produced ethanol as a petrol substitute is an answer to the future challenges of climate-friendly energy supply in the transport sector. Thanks to highly efficient production plants, our ethanol reduces CO2 emissions by an average of more than 70 percent across the entire value chain compared to fossil fuel. Our high-quality alcohol is also used in beverage production, cosmetics, pharmaceutical applications, for example as a basis for disinfectants, or as a raw material for innovative biochemicals.
Equally important are the resulting protein food and animal feed products as a sustainable regional alternative to emission-intensive protein imports from overseas, as well as biogenic carbon dioxide. It is used in beverage production, among other things, and will be a valuable raw material for a wide range of applications in transport and industry in the future. Thus, all raw material components are utilised in our circular economy.
CropEnergies AG (ISIN DE000A0LAUP1) is listed on the regulated market (Prime Standard) of the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.