Insolvency plan agreement leads HegerFerrit GmbH out of insolvency

With effect from September 01, 2023, the foundry, which specializes in castings for wind turbines, large engines and other industrial parts, will continue its business operations following the termination of insolvency proceedings. The company, which is one of the most modern foundries in Europe, will remain at its Sembach (Rhineland-Palatinate) site with around 100 jobs following the entry of investor Hermann Bettels GmbH & Co. KG. Allert & Co. advised the management of the company and the trustee, Mr. Tobias Wahl, attorney-at-law (Anchor Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH, Mannheim) during the investor process.

The Heger group of companies was founded in 1902 and has been a supplier on the market for castings of the highest quality for various industrial sectors for decades. HegerFerrit GmbH has been a leading player since 2009 when it came to castings for wind turbines. With unit weight of up to 32 t and one of the most modern foundry facilities with flow production, HegerFerrit was a recognized quality supplier for the well-known wind turbine manufacturers. Following an increasingly difficult order situation in the wind power industry as well as drastically increased prices for energy and raw materials, which led to the insolvency of the sister company HegerGuss GmbH, the company was also forced to file for insolvency in self-administration in September 2022. With the support of the restructuring specialist, attorney Mr. Marc-Philippe Hornung (SZA Schilling, Zutt & Anschütz Rechtsanwaltsgesellschaft mbH, Mannheim), the managing partner, Mr. Johannes Heger, succeeded in stabilizing the company and continuing the restructuring that had already begun before the insolvency application was filed. In cooperation with Allert & Co. an international investor process was initiated, in which Hermann Bettels GmbH & Co. KG proved to be the ideal partner for the implementation of an insolvency plan. The Hermann Bettels group of companies already holds two operating companies in the field of wind turbine manufacturing and has intensive business relationships with many well-known wind turbine manufacturers. HegerFerrit fits in here like the proverbial "missing piece of the puzzle".

On August 7, 2023, Mr. Wahl, Mr. Heger and Mr. Hornung presented the insolvency plan drawn up on the basis of the investor offer at the discussion and voting meeting at the district court of Kaiserslautern, which met with broad approval from the creditors.

Everyone involved is pleased that HegerFerrit is continuing and hopes that the expansion of wind energy, which has long been discussed politically, will lead to full order books for the high-performance suppliers again in the foreseeable future.

Johannes Heger: "I am relieved that, thanks to the option of the insolvency plan and a strong partner, our family-owned company, which is rich in tradition, can now once again look to the future with confidence and continue to demonstrate its capabilities."

Marc-Philippe Hornung adds: "The HegerFerrit proceedings show what restructuring options self-administration offers in the interest of the company and the creditors, if the management and shareholders deal with it actively and in good time." And further: "The future-oriented design of the insolvency plan offers the employees, the investor, the financiers involved and also the founding family the prospect of benefiting from the hoped-for boom in renewable energies."

Tobias Wahl: "I am very pleased that the self-administration has succeeded in preserving the company and securing 100 jobs. Thanks to the commitment of the numerous stakeholders, the company can once again look forward to a successful future."

Arnd Allert: "We wish the Heger family and the Hermann Bettels group of companies every success in their future cooperation and thank everyone involved for their trust."