At the struggling battery company Skewer has apparently taken a decisive step towards the restructuring of the company. According to a press release on Saturday, the creditors and the Austrian major shareholder Michael Tojner on a restructuring plan that would involve a debt cut of 485 million 200 million euros provides.
At the same time, Tojner, together with sports car manufacturer Porsche, is injecting fresh capital of 60 million euros Tojner and the Porsche Groupwhose possible entry into Varta had already been rumored.
Further payments are coming from creditors 60 million as senior secured loans. A third shareholder could come on board later, the company said.
“First important step”
“Despite the current economic challenges, the company offers great potential to make Europe’s battery cell research and production more independent of Asian suppliers. Together with Porsche, we want to make a contribution to this. With today’s agreement, we have taken a first important step that will secure the stability of Varta AG and pave the way for a new start,” Tojner commented on the capital injection.
Porsche wants to use Varta’s continued existence to secure access to high-performance batteries for its hybrid and electric sports cars. Porsche even wants to take over a clear majority in this division, called “V4Drive,” it was said.
Bankruptcy off the table
A bankruptcy of Varta is therefore off the table for the time being, a company spokesman said. However, the so-called pre-insolvency procedure remains in place.
Varta-Chief Michael Ostermann had a radical restructuring in July according to the German StaRUG Restructuring Act announced after Varta was no longer able to service its debts.
Locations remain
Varta will hold on to all its locations in Germany. There will be no major cuts to the workforce, only a “moderate” reduction in jobs in administration, said Ostermann: Varta will be put back on a profitable growth path.