RWE AG is Europe’s third-largest utility and under recently-appointed CEO, Harry Roels, has been selling off businesses considered non-core to its mainstay energy and water activities.

Earlier this year, RWE sold off Hochtief AG, Germany’s largest builder, as part of a strategy to reduce the group’s debt to less than EUR17bn by the end of 2005. The divestment strategy is seen as freeing up funds for further acquisition following the opening of European water and energy sectors to competition in 1998.

In 2003, Roels appointed RWE CFO, Klaus Sturany, to head up Heidelberg’s supervisory board and oversee a restructuring of the business following the slump in printing machinery sales which has affected all manufacturers.

As reported by i-grafix in recent months, Heidelberg’s restructuring process has seen announcements about the sale of both web offset and digital manufacturing units and a return to its core business, commercial printing, as well as a greater focus on packaging.

RWE has set a Thursday deadline for the acceptance of both sale offers. Timing of the announcement just before the opening of drupa was considered significant as Heidelberg’s fortunes appear to be improving on expectations for a global economic recovery. The company is expecting new orders worth more than EUR1bn to flow from drupa and recently announced a higher-than-expected full-year operating profit of EUR20m, despite an increase in its net loss from EUR138m to EUR690m.

Shares in Heidelberg were down as much as 10.1 per cent on the announcement, whilst RWE shares were up slightly.

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