Energi Danmark settles case with former Employees

Three former employees of Energi Danmark’s trading department have until today claimed to be entitled to approx. DKK 1.1 billion in total via a special share-based bonus agreement. An agreement concluded with the former CEO of Energi Danmark.  Energi Danmark has from the beginning found the agreement invalid because the then CEO was not authorised to enter into such an agreement on behalf of Energi Danmark without the approval of the company’s Board of Directors. The agreement was not approved by Energi Danmark’s Board of Directors in connection with the conclusion of the agreement.

A necessary settlement

The three former employees originally made a claim for extraordinary bonuses of about DKK 1.1 billion. To settle the case, an agreement has been made for compensation to the three former employees. Total compensation payable to the three former employees for the entire period (2022-2023) constitutes DKK 74.6 million, including bonuses already paid under their employment contracts totalling DKK 11 million. As part of today’s agreement, the three former employees waive all claims against Energi Danmark.

Energi Danmark’s Board of Directors is convinced that the company had a good case.  Therefore, the agreement is the result of a purely rational decision based on the special circumstances of the case and the very large amounts involved, in addition to the fact that a similar case has never before been tried before a Danish court. To eliminate any litigation risk and significant legal costs, the Board therefore chose to enter into an agreement to settle the case. With the conclusion of the agreement, Energi Danmark will be able to move forward and concentrate its efforts on the future operation and development of the business.

Jesper Hjulmand, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Energi Danmark, and Jacob Vittrup, Deputy Chairman, have the following comments on the settlement of the case:

“We have previously stated what we think about the process, and there is no doubt that, based on our values, we would have liked to bring the case to court. But from a rational perspective, today’s agreement is the right solution for Energi Danmark. By entering into this agreement, we have avoided a small risk, but a risk nonetheless, of losing a substantial amount of money. Rather than wasting our energy, effort and money on a lengthy, potentially exhausting court case, we’re now ready to focus on bringing Energi Danmark forward. The case has caused us to perform a thorough review of Energi Danmark’s governance and risk management to minimise the risk of a similar case occurring in the future. We fully support Louise Hahn as the new CEO of Energi Danmark and any additional measures she deems necessary to create further transparency and good governance.”

Today’s agreement finally settles the case, and the parties have agreed not to publicly comment further on the case or the settlement.

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