Insolvency petitions have been filed with the Tübingen Local Court for several companies within the SOWITEC Group, which is headquartered in Sonnenbühl-Willmandingen. The court appointed GÖRG Partner Dr Holger Leichtle as provisional insolvency administrator of SOWITEC Group GmbH, SOWITEC International GmbH, SOWITEC Operation GmbH and SOWITEC Projekt GmbH. SOWITEC group GmbH serves as the group’s holding company; the three wholly-owned subsidiaries, which are also in insolvency, are responsible for international and national projects, as well as for providing services to the project companies (including maintenance and bookkeeping).
The SOWITEC Group has been developing wind and solar projects worldwide for more than 30 years and, according to the company, currently operates in 13 countries. Its business model involves identifying suitable sites, planning the facilities and obtaining the necessary permits. The project companies are usually sold to investors and utility companies, who then operate the wind farms. The group currently employs around 80 staff, of whom about 30 are based in Germany, mainly at the Willmandingen site. Its international operations have recently been substantially scaled back.
According to the managing partner and co-founder, Dipl.-Ing. Frank Hummel, the insolvency petitions became unavoidable after all attempts by the management to find solutions with the stakeholders had failed. Furthermore, expected payments from customers in South America had not been received as scheduled.
Business operations at the affected companies will continue without restriction. Employees’ wages and salaries are secured through insolvency payments from the Employment Agency.
The provisional insolvency administrator’s key tasks include, in addition to ensuring the continuation of operations, assessing the viability of a restructuring, exploring investor interest and laying the groundwork for an orderly insolvency procedure.
Dr Leichtle commenced his work immediately following his appointment on Wednesday. In order to gain a comprehensive overview of the financial situation and ongoing projects as quickly as possible, Dr Leichtle is supported on site by a large team and is currently conducting an in-depth review of existing projects to assess their value and feasibility.
Provisional insolvency administration of the SOWITec Group
GÖRG Partnerschaft von Rechtsanwälten mbB / GÖRG Insolvenzverwaltung Partnerschaft von Rechtsanwälten mbB / GÖRG Rechtsanwälte/Insolvenzverwalter GbR
Dr Holger Leichtle (Partner, Insolvency Administration and Restructuring, Stuttgart)
