Innogy SE

The story of Innogy SE is not one of a startup, but a strategic spin-off by German energy giant RWE. Faced with Germany's 'Energiewende'—a massive shift to renewables that disrupted traditional utility models—RWE made a bold move. In 2016, it carved out its renewable energy, grid, and retail businesses into a new, separate company: Innogy SE. This entity was designed to be an innovative and sustainable energy company, separating the future-facing assets from RWE's conventional power generation. The CEO of RWE at the time, Peter Terium, also became the CEO of the new company. In October 2016, Innogy launched with one of Germany's largest IPOs in years, raising billions and valuing the new company at around €20 billion. The IPO was a success, with significant investor interest in Innogy's future-oriented business model, which included not just renewables but also a vast distribution grid and a retail customer base of 23 million. RWE initially retained a majority stake of about 75%. The company's independent journey, however, was short-lived. In a landmark deal announced in March 2018, RWE and its main competitor, E.ON, agreed to a complex asset swap. E.ON would acquire Innogy to absorb its valuable grid and retail businesses, while transferring Innogy's and its own renewable energy assets to RWE. This strategic play effectively ended Innogy's brief existence as a standalone company. By mid-2020, the takeover was complete, and Innogy was integrated into E.ON, reshaping the German energy landscape once again.