Buy out: DBAG ECF IV acquires majority stake in TNL Group

Frank­furt am Main — Deut­sche Betei­li­gungs AG (DBAG) is inves­t­ing in the TNL Group (TNL), a leading specia­list for envi­ron­men­tal plan­ning and permit­ting consul­ting in the field of energy and trans­por­ta­tion infra­struc­ture. DBAG ECF IV, a fund advi­sed by DBAG, will acquire a majo­rity stake in TNL as part of a manage­ment buy-out. The tran­sac­tion was initia­ted bila­te­rally through DBAG’s network and once again under­lines the quality and resi­li­ence of its access to attrac­tive mid-market tran­sac­tions. TNL foun­der and co-mana­­ging direc­tor Frank Berns­hau­sen and other members of the manage­ment team will re-invest a signi­fi­cant amount. The closing of the tran­sac­tion is subject to regu­la­tory appr­ovals. The parties have agreed not to disc­lose the purchase price.

TNL sets the course for the expan­sion of the energy tran­si­tion and trans­port infrastructure
TNL is a specia­list provi­der of envi­ron­men­tal plan­ning, appr­oval consul­ting and cons­truc­tion services for complex infra­struc­ture projects. Foun­ded in 1994 by Frank Berns­hau­sen, the company star­ted out as a consul­tancy firm and today supports chal­len­ging cons­truc­tion projects such as wind and solar parks, high-voltage and extra-high-voltage power lines and trans­port infra­struc­ture projects. 

TNL supports its clients along the entire project chain: from the preli­mi­nary ecolo­gi­cal study to the offi­cial appr­oval process and subse­quent cons­truc­tion super­vi­sion and implementation.

TNL also has special exper­tise in projects with complex ecolo­gi­cal issues, is charac­te­ri­zed in parti­cu­lar by the deve­lo­p­ment of prac­ti­cal solu­ti­ons and is estab­lished as a service provi­der for deman­ding large-scale projects with the four German trans­mis­sion system opera­tors TenneT, Amprion, 50Hertz and TransnetBW.

The group of compa­nies employs around 250 people at four loca­ti­ons. In 2025, they gene­ra­ted a total opera­ting perfor­mance of around 30 million euros. 

Market charac­te­ri­zed by struc­tu­ral growth

The invest­ment follows DBAG’s stra­tegy of making targe­ted invest­ments in compa­nies that operate in struc­tu­rally attrac­tive markets. The expan­sion of trans­port infra­struc­ture, the energy tran­si­tion and the expan­sion of the German trans­mis­sion grids as part of the Network Deve­lo­p­ment Plan (NDP) are driving a sustained high demand for quali­fied envi­ron­men­tal plan­ning services. This dyna­mic is also reflec­ted in TNL’s deve­lo­p­ment: the company’s core market has grown at an annua­li­zed double-digit percen­tage rate since 2020. 

This posi­tive deve­lo­p­ment is also supported by long-term frame­work agree­ments. The attrac­tive company profile is roun­ded off by impres­sive refe­ren­ces in system-rele­­vant projects for the energy tran­si­tion such as Sued­Link, Sued­Ost­Link and Rhein-Main-Link. 

Tom Alzin, CEO of Deut­sche Betei­li­gungs AG, says: “TNL is a true hidden cham­pion in a non-cycli­­cal growth market. The company provi­des indis­pensable plan­ning services for projects that are essen­tial for the success of the energy tran­si­tion.” He adds: “Frank Berns­hau­sen and his team have built up a unique market posi­tion over 30 years, which is based on a strong foun­da­tion of exper­tise, project compe­tence, trust in autho­ri­ties and custo­mers. We want to consis­t­ently deve­lop this strong foun­da­tion toge­ther with the management.” 

Conti­nuity through long-term growth strategy

Since its foun­da­tion in 1994, TNL has deve­lo­ped from a regio­nal consul­tancy firm into one of the leading provi­ders of envi­ron­men­tal plan­ning services for natio­nal energy and trans­por­ta­tion infrastructure.

With DBAG ECF IV as the new majo­rity share­hol­der, this growth course is to be consis­t­ently contin­ued. This includes the imple­men­ta­tion of an advi­sory board that will support the further deve­lo­p­ment of the company. In addi­tion, the market presence in distri­bu­tion network opera­tors, rail infra­struc­ture and in the areas of land resto­ra­tion, climate adapt­a­tion, climate protec­tion and water manage­ment is to be syste­ma­ti­cally expan­ded. TNL is also exami­ning company acquisitions. 

“We have deve­lo­ped the stra­tegy for the next growth phase toge­ther with Frank Berns­hau­sen and his team and have been on an equal footing from the outset. Our goal is clear: TNL should grow orga­ni­cally and through targe­ted acqui­si­ti­ons, thus further diver­si­fy­ing its custo­mer and exper­tise base and consis­t­ently deli­ve­ring the quality for which the company is known among its custo­mers. To this end, we are making targe­ted invest­ments in IT, proces­ses and employee deve­lo­p­ment,” says Chris­toph Groß­e­käm­per, Mana­ging Direc­tor, Deut­sche Betei­li­gungs AG.

Frank Berns­hau­sen, foun­der and co-mana­­ging direc­tor of the TNL Group, explains: “I foun­ded TNL as an envi­ron­men­tal plan­ning office and am proud of what we have achie­ved toge­ther, such as our invol­vement in some of Germany’s most important infra­struc­ture projects.” He conti­nues: “It was always clear to me that if I was looking for a succes­sion part­ner, I needed someone who unders­tood the busi­ness and who cared about the people in the company. I have found both in DBAG. We now have the oppor­tu­nity to tackle the next phase of growth with a stron­ger orga­niza­tion, new markets and the back­ing of an expe­ri­en­ced partner.” 

About DBAG

Deut­sche Betei­li­gungs AG (DBAG), which has been listed on the stock exch­ange since 1985, is one of the most renow­ned private equity compa­nies in Germany. As an inves­tor and fund advi­sor, DBAG’s invest­ment focus has tradi­tio­nally been on medium-sized compa­nies with a focus on well-posi­­tio­­ned compa­nies with deve­lo­p­ment poten­tial, prima­rily in the DACH region. The sector focus is on produ­cers of indus­trial goods, indus­trial service provi­ders and Indus­try­Tech compa­nies — i.e. compa­nies whose products enable auto­ma­tion, robo­tics and digi­ta­liza­tion — as well as compa­nies from the busi­ness services, IT services, soft­ware, health­care, envi­ron­ment, energy and infra­struc­ture sectors. DBAG has also been active in Italy since 2020 and has had its own office in Milan since 2021. The assets mana­ged or advi­sed by the DBAG Group amount to around 2.7 billion euros. ELF Capi­tal comple­ments DBAG’s range of flexi­ble finan­cing solu­ti­ons for SMEs with private debt capi­tal. — www.dbag.de