ADEV Genossenschaft

Offer:
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ADEV was founded in 1985 as part of the anti-nuclear movement in Switzerland. At the time, there were discussions about the construction of a nuclear power plant near Basel, which was strongly opposed by the local population. A group of idealists founded the ADEV as an energy community to promote energy generation options other than nuclear power plants. Another motivation for founding ADEV was to finance the first grid-operated wind power plant in the region. This was built on the initiative of the Langenbruck eco-center and still needed financing. The founding of ADEV therefore also served as a financing vehicle for the wind power plant.

In the early years, ADEV primarily supported the establishment of heating networks. These were all largely self-financed and equipped with a combined heat and power plant (gas-based).

The cooperative quickly realized that one of the biggest problems was obtaining outside capital, as the deposits of the cooperative members were not considered equity capital by the banks at the time, as cooperative members could have returned their shares and been paid out at any time. Over the years, ADEV therefore decided to set up public limited companies. The stock corporations are traded on the Bern Stock Exchange, which is less like a traditional stock exchange and more like a trading platform. The stock corporations guarantee equity capital and offer the banks security for borrowing. Since then, the ADEV Cooperative has functioned as a holding company for the four public limited companies.

The legal form of a cooperative was chosen so that citizens can participate, stay informed and actively engage in the energy transition. In order to be able to show equity capital to the banks, four stock corporations were also founded, each of which is structured according to technology (Windkraft AG, Wasserkraft AG, Solarstrom AG and Ökowärme AG). This allows investors to decide in which technologies they want to invest their money.

Tasks:
- Financing and planning/implementation of the plants.
- Contracting: Operation, administration and maintenance of the plants.
- Information and education for cooperative members (e.g. through a cooperative magazine and excursions to the plants).

Roles:
- Members: 2200 members, of whom around 250 attend the annual general meeting
- Board of Directors: There are 14 board members, over the 5 companies. They are all remunerated with a daily rate of CHF 500.
- Management: 3 men.
- Employees: A total of 21 people employed in the areas of "Staff positions and assistance", "Finance and administration" and "Planning and construction".
- Investment managers: The cooperative also employs 30 people to look after the facilities and maintain them as required.

The cooperative is financed by a mix of:
- Cooperative shares: 1 share costs 500 francs. A maximum of 60 shares (30,000 francs) can be acquired by one member.
- Shares/capital procurement: Investors can buy and trade shares in the AGs. A starting capital was paid in when the AGs were founded and capital increases are carried out regularly.
- Loan system: Cooperative members can grant loans to the cooperative. This means that they can invest their money in the cooperative in the form of a loan for either 3 to 5 years or 6 to 10 years. The minimum amount is 500 francs. Lenders can choose from a range of interest rates (currently between 0-1% for short-term loans and up to 1.5% for long-term loans). Most of them invest their money at 0% interest because they put their money in ADEV out of conviction and their own values.
- Borrowed capital: the cooperative currently has enough equity so that it does not need to borrow.

Business model/economy: ADEV has secure financing and good profitability thanks to the financing mix of equity (cooperative shares and shares) and debt capital (loans and bank loans). As a cooperative and non-yield-oriented company, ADEV pays a maximum dividend of 3%. As a rule, it is 1-2%.

Since it was founded as a public limited company, ADEV has been able to show equity and thus take out loans from the bank. ADEV now has sufficient equity and is no longer reliant on borrowed capital.

Solar power plants, small hydropower plants, wind power plants as well as heating centers and local heating networks.

ADEV is pursuing various technical implementation concepts. It currently (2023) owns 130 plants, including 90 PV plants, 12 small hydropower plants, 2 wind turbines and around 25 district heating networks.