Utilities & Environment
This page summarizes the published SME benchmark for this business type, including its disclosed market basis, so advisors and operators can cite a clear starting point before a full company-specific valuation.
Business type benchmark
Last published: 31 May 2026fresh · 4 days old≈ 6 min readEndpoint
Model-ready data package
Pull this sector's multiples together with country market data in one response. Use JSON for agents and apps, or CSV for Excel models and deal workpapers.
/api/benchmarks/v1/context?business_type_id=utilities&locale=enClassification
35
NACE Rev. 2 primary code. National statistical labels (e.g. SBI, NACE-BEL) describe how each country maps this activity.
Markets
Benelux aggregate
Published benchmark
31 May 2026
Published benchmark ranges
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Sign up freeHow To Use This Benchmark
Use these ranges as a market reference, not as a substitute for a full valuation. Company quality, growth, concentration, recurring revenue, margin profile, and deal context still matter.
Pair This With The Right Valuation Method
These benchmark pages work best when they feed into a fuller valuation workflow on Upswitch. Start with the market range, then choose the method that fits the company.
Upswitch Index vs Damodaran
Both are useful — they answer different questions. Pick the right reference for the work.
Upswitch Index
Private-market, SME, by business type
- Benelux-native where the row proves local evidence
- By business type, disclosed market basis, citable vintages
- Free to use — no credit card
Damodaran
Listed equities, global, by sector
- Public-market companies, annual global cuts
- Broad sector buckets, not country-resolved
- Free academic resource
Energy supply, generation and grid services
How utilities & environment actually gets valued
The multiples above are a market anchor — not the valuation. What drives the outcome are sector-typical normalisations, value drivers and risk compressors.
Normalisation checklist
What reported EBITDA almost always distorts in this sector.
- Separate regulated grid-fee revenue from competitive supply margin — they value at very different multiples.
- Strip CfD / feed-in-tariff settlement timing where the cash hits in a different period than the dispatch.
- Adjust merchant-tail risk: revenue past the regulated period must be valued at a market-curve discount.
- Reflect dispatch-cycle wear on assets; under-investment shows up as artificially high EBITDA.
- Verify ROC / GO certificates as separate trading-asset revenue, not part of operating EBITDA.
Value drivers
What typically lifts the multiple in this sector.
- Long-tenor PPA or CfD with an investment-grade off-taker.
- Grid-connection rights at a constrained substation that competitors can't replicate.
- Modern, low-OPEX asset class (solar, onshore wind) within first half of useful life.
- Diversified portfolio across technologies that smooths intermittency drag.
Value killers
What compresses the multiple or kills the deal.
- Significant merchant tail without hedging strategy in a volatile-price regime.
- Asset class facing accelerated depreciation under EU 2030 emissions intensity rules.
- Off-taker concentration above 60% with renegotiation pending.
- Pending regulator review on capacity-market eligibility.
Anonymised worked example
Illustrative — not a recommendation. Real valuations run through the Upswitch engine.
An onshore wind operator reports €4.2M revenue and €2.6M reported EBITDA. Its 15-year CfD covers 11 remaining years; merchant-tail revenue is currently valued at strike-price levels, which overstates value. Re-pricing the merchant tail at a forward-curve discount (€220k EBITDA equivalent uplift removed), reflecting €70k of dispatch-wear under-depreciation, and adjusting €110k of GO-certificate revenue out of operating EBITDA, normalised CfD-period EBITDA is €2.20M. A sector range of 7.5×–9.5× (regulated renewable, mid-life) yields €16.5M–€20.9M for the CfD period, with the merchant tail valued separately on a discounted forward curve.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are these published numbers company-specific?
No. They are published market reference points for this business type in the country markets that Upswitch has evidence for. A real valuation still needs company-specific inputs and judgment.
Why do some business types show more than one metric?
Different sectors are often discussed with different market lenses. Upswitch shows the published metrics that are available for this business type.
Can I use this in a client conversation?
Yes. These pages are designed as citation-friendly starting points. For a client-ready report, use the full valuation workflow on Upswitch.
Is this database free to use?
Yes. The Upswitch Index publishes free SME valuation multiples (EV/EBITDA, EV/Revenue, and P/E) by business type. Benelux can be native-local where row evidence supports it; wider European market views are disclosed as beta, borrowed, aggregate, or compatibility coverage. Historical vintages and audit exports are on paid plans.
How does Upswitch Index compare to Damodaran?
Damodaran publishes annual global multiples for listed companies by broad sector — a gold standard for public markets. Upswitch Index publishes granular SME/private-company benchmark ranges by business type with row-level disclosure of whether evidence is native-local, borrowed, aggregate, or beta-stage. Both are useful; they answer different questions.
What is the source methodology behind these multiples?
Upswitch publishes only through row-level benchmark contracts. Evidence can include private-market observations, local filings or statistics, listed-comparable context, and macro calibration anchors, but source labels are used only when they actually contributed to the resolved benchmark. Full methodology is on the methodology page.
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Full valuation workflow — Upswitch
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