German Pellets and ZG Raiffeisen Energie form 'best

Pellets' joint venture, combining forces for wood pellet sales

(DGAP-Media / 11.11.2014 / 18:30)

Press Release

German Pellets and ZG Raiffeisen Energie form "best:Pellets" joint venture,

combining forces for wood pellet sales

- Pellet producer and trading cooperative society extend existing
cooperation in setting up a joint sales company

- Goals: to gain further market shares in the growing market for pellets;
customers to benefit from synergies, with even better quality and
service

Wismar/Karlsruhe, 11 November 2014: The pellet producer German Pellets and
ZG Raiffeisen Energie GmbH, a Baden-based trading and service company
organised as a cooperative, have founded a joint venture for the sale of
wood pellets. The aim is to group together the operations in south-west
Germany's pellet market to a greater extent in the future and to further
expand the sale of wood pellets to end-customer. The name of the joint
subsidiary company will be "best:Pellets Handelsgemeinschaft". The
resolution to found the joint venture was adopted in the last few days and
approval has been obtained from the cartel-law authorities. Pellet sales to
consumers begin on 1 January 2015. German Pellets, one of the world's
largest pellet producers, and ZG Raiffeisen Energie - belonging to one of
Germany's five main cooperative-based enterprises in the Raiffeisen group -
each have a 50 per cent stake in best:Pellets GmbH.

Peter Leibold, Managing Director of German Pellets GmbH, explains: "For
several years now, we have worked together with ZG Raiffeisen Energie in
the pellet business in Baden-Württemberg Federal State, successfully and
with a high level of trust. That is why a number of years ago German
Pellets, as the manufacturer, also took over the supply logistics. ZG
Raiffeisen Energie's wood-pellets business area and the players involved
command a lot of experience in the fuel business, with an outstanding
network in the region. We are now taking the next logical step in our
cooperation, so as to gain further market shares." For years, ZG Raiffeisen
Energie has been selling wood pellets of the German Pellets brand to
end-consumers in Baden-Württemberg. "German Pellets' strength, impact on
the market, specialist competence and high product quality have made it
into an ideal and indispensable partner for us in the pellet business",
says Rudi App, Managing Director of ZG Raiffeisen Energie GmbH. "Our
declared goal is to group together our activities even more strongly now
and to further expand pellet sales also geographically", App points out.