WirtschaftsWoche’s seal of quality for Restrukturierungspartner

At the end of November, WirtschaftsWoche presented the “Best of Consulting Mittelstand 2020“ award for the eleventh time. In the “Operations“ category, the jury voted Restrukturierungspartner into 3rd place. The decisive factor was the successful restructuring of the Berlin start-up Mobisol.

As the partner responsible for the project, Dr. Stefan Weniger is delighted about this special award and the associated recognition of the work: „We are very proud of this award as it confirms the high quality of our consulting services. In addition to our own dedicated team, many other project participants made the restructuring possible in the first place“.

The Mobisol Group is a leading global supplier of decentralized solar systems. The company designs, distributes and maintains solar systems and larger installations. With its specially developed “off-grid“ rooftop solar systems and accessories, Mobisol secures the energy supply for private households and businesses in regions with a weak infrastructure in rural East Africa. This enables people to use a wide range of compatible appliances such as refrigerators, televisions and stereo equipment. By combining the latest high-tech solar hardware with mobile payment technologies, the Berlin-based company also ensures affordable as well as flexible financing plans.

In 2018, Mobisol Group ran into economic difficulties. In order to restore the company to sustainable profitability and secure jobs, the restructuring process was started in April 2019 within the framework of insolvency proceedings in self-administration. Dr. Stefan Weniger assumed responsibility for the operational restructuring as CRO. Also on board were Daniel Fritz (DENTONS Europe LLP), who provided legal advice as general representative, and Friedemann Schade (BRL) as trustee. As part of the process, various restructuring measures were developed and implemented and a distressed M&A process was initiated to find a suitable strategic investor. In addition to the tight timeline, the complex business structures and the global group structure in seven different jurisdictions were particularly challenging for all restructuring experts involved. In October 2019, the French energy group Engie took over the operating subsidiaries in East Africa as well as the Berlin-based holding company, including all employees, and has since continued the business. „We are all very happy that the business model of sustainable off-grid energy in rural East Africa lives on and is being developed to profitability“, Weniger enthuses.

With the Best of Consulting Award, the business magazine honored Germany's best management consultants for the eleventh time. Each year consultancies throughout Germany are called upon to have a client project evaluated by a scientific advisory board and a jury. The jury consists of an editor-in-chief of WirtschaftsWoche, an academic advisor and several decision-makers with consulting experience from major companies.