Fabbri: "Hera to drive growth through network and environmental acquisitions"

(Alliance News) - For Hera, born from the merger of 11 municipal utilities, M&A remains a cornerstone of strategy. Over more than two decades, the group has completed approximately 60 transactions, now serving 13% of the Italian population, explains Executive Chairman Cristian Fabbri, who is currently up for reappointment.

As he told la Repubblica, one-third of the growth projected in the 2029 plan - amounting to EUR600 million - will be driven by acquisitions. These are expected to contribute approximately EUR100 million to EBITDA, primarily within the networks, energy, and environmental sectors.

The operations target integration and synergies - representing 20-25% of EBITDA - as seen with the Sostelia and Sea deals, utilizing a model that remains open to the shareholders of the acquired companies.

Fabbri emphasizes that increased consolidation within the sector would bolster efficiency and investment capacity. Hera forecasts EUR11.5 billion in distributed value over the 2025-29 period, while maintaining high capital expenditure levels.

The group remains open to potential integrations with other multi-utilities, though the water sector continues to be hampered by fragmentation and regulatory constraints.

In the biomethane and hydrogen segments, the group is active with two plants set to be operational by 2026. Regarding the "bills decree," any potential IRAP tax increase would have an estimated impact of EUR8-9 million between 2026 and 2027.

By Giuseppe Fabio Ciccomascolo, Alliance News senior reporter

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