French energy group EDF has completed the sale of its 25.04% stake in the Swiss power utility Alpiq Holding for CHF489m (€436m) to the Swiss investors EOS Holding and Primeo Energie, corresponding to an average price of CHF 70 (€62) per share of Alpiq. EOS and Primeo Energie, which held respectively 31.4% and 13.7% of Alpiq, each acquired half of EDF's stake, raising their stake in Alpiq to 43.96% and 26.17%, respectively. Alpiq shareholders now include EOS (43.96%), the Consortium of Swiss Minority Shareholders KSM (43.95%, including Primeo Energie with 26.17%) and public (12.09%).
Since the acquisition of EDF's stake by EOS and Primeo Energie was financed by mandatory exchangeable loans from Schweizer Kraftwerksbeteiligungs-AG, a fully-owned subsidiary of Credit Suisse Investment Foundation's investment group CSA Energy Infrastructure Switzerland, CSA has announced a voluntary public takeover offer and proposed CHF 70 (€62) per share of Alpiq to Alpiq's shareholders. The offer period will start in late July 2019 and is expected to be completed in early October 2019. The group would then be delisted from the SIX Swiss Exchange.
Alpiq currently operates 6,100 MW of capacity spread across Europe, mostly in Switzerland (3,456 MW), Spain (846 MW), Italy (715 MW), Czech Republic (593 MW), Hungary (403 MW), Bulgaria (73 MW) and France (14 MW). Over 44% of the company's capacity consists in large-scale hydropower plants, while the remainder is spread among thermal power plants (38%), nuclear assets (12%) and small-scale hydropower, wind and solar PV (5.4%). In 2018, the group generated arond 15 TWh. In order to improve its financial situation, the group decided to merge its renewable and thermal power generation businesses in December 2018. As of January 2019, Alpiq is now split into three divisions: Generation Switzerland, Generation International and Digital & Commerce. This spin-off is slated to support the financial stabilisation of the company.