Fortum will buy 20.5% of Uniper for 2.3 billion euros

Finnish energy concern Fortum has finally reached an agreement with Elliott and Knight Vinke funds to buy a 20.5% stake in the German company Uniper for 2.3 billion euros, reported . Bloomberg

• After the transaction, Fortum will receive 70.5% in Uniper. The deal will be financed by the company's own funds and loans.
• In preliminary trading, Uniper's quotes fell 6%, Fortum rose 2%.
• The deal, which Fortum has been seeking since 2017, was hindered by funds and the FAS: in Russia, Uniper has a water utility that belongs to strategic enterprises. According to the law, Fortum, as a foreign company, cannot receive more than 50% of this asset, said Igor Artemyev, chairman of the FAS.
• According to Kommersant, the stumbling block is Unipro's Surgutskaya GRES-2 with a water treatment plant and wells. What way out of the situation is found now, Fortum does not explain. However, in the spring the company wanted to exchange assets with Gazprom Energoholding.
• Both Fortum and Uniper have assets in Russia. Fortum owns 94% of the shares of the Russian Fortum, which owns eight thermal power plants in the Urals and Western Siberia. Uniper owns 83.73% of the shares of the Russian Unipro.