Two large energy deals – a potential listing of TenneT’s transmission system operations (TSO) in Germany and the planned privatisation of Uniper – are attracting significant interest from dealmakers in the DACH region.

Founded in 1998, TenneT runs the electricity grid in the Netherlands and much of Germany. A planned initial public offer (IPO) of its German arm could raise billions of euros.

Meanwhile, the German state is looking to sell its 99% stake in flexible low-carbon power provider Uniper, in what could be one of the largest deals of the year in Europe, once the country’s new government gets up to speed.

As well as these large-cap deals, M&A practitioners who attended Mergermarket’s M&A Forum Germany 2025 in Frankfurt last week were surprisingly optimistic about the pipeline as a whole.

The economy might be stagnant, but there are pockets of value in the industrial base, and deal flow is expected to pick up as financing conditions ease.

Aurelia Seidlhofer, Mergermarket’s Munich-based senior correspondent for Germany, Austria and Switzerland (DACH), joins Dealcast host Julie-Anna Needham to discuss why Europe’s biggest economy will continue to be a force to reckon with.

• ·         Will increased defence spending help companies in other verticals develop dual-use products and services?
• ·         Will we see more carve-out deals in Germany’s chemicals sector?
• ·         What are the challenges and opportunities for the Mittelstand market, which refers to industry-focussed, innovative, and export-orientated mid-cap companies.

All this and more in this week’s Dealcast.