Por Clara Hernanz Lizarraga/Bloomberg News
MADRID
EnergiesNet.com 02 11 2022
Naturgy Energy Group SA, Spain’s largest distributor of natural gas, said it plans to split into two listed companies, separating the infrastructure business from its energy operations.
Both companies will have the same shareholding structure, and stockholders will get another share for each Naturgy share they currently hold, the Madrid-based utility said in a filing.
“Thanks to this separation, we will be able to think in terms of what the company needs, not as a whole but what each of the two parts need concretely,” Chairman Francisco Reynes said during a press conference in Madrid.
The split is expected to be completed this year.
Shares of Naturgy rose 2.1% to 28.50 euros as of 5:20 p.m. in Madrid, valuing the company at 28 billion euros ($32 billion).
Naturgy in July cut its dividend by 25% as it announced plans to spend 14 billion euros on green energy and networks over the next five years. The utility aims to boost installed renewable capacity to 14 gigawatts by 2025 from only 4.6 gigawatts in 2020 as it develops solar, onshore wind and storage technology.
IFM Global Infrastructure, the Australian fund that bought an 11% stake in the Spanish utility last year through an offer, now holds about 12%, according to Naturgy’s website. The bid for as much as 23% of the Spanish utility gave IFM a stake that’s smaller than those of Global Infrastructure Partners and CVC Capital Partners-backed Rioja, which each have about 21% of Naturgy. Spanish holding company Criteria Caixa SA is the biggest shareholder with a stake of 26.7%.
bloomberg.com 02 10 2022
