The first electricity supplier in France and in Europe soon back in the bosom of the French State?

The latter, which already owned 84% of the electric giant, announced on Tuesday July 19 its intention to launch a public takeover bid (OPA) to renationalize it 100%.

A 9.7 billion euro operation, motivated by one ambition: to get the group out of its financial and industrial rut.

The government has chosen the simplest route, instead of a nationalization law – which would have been the first since 1981 – it plans to file the offer by the beginning of September with the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF ), with the objective of completing the operation at the end of October.

However, this will be subject to Parliament voting the necessary credits, in the amending finance law for 2022 currently being examined by the National Assembly.

A price per share deemed "clearly insufficient"

The State proposes to buy back the 15.9% of the capital remaining to be acquired at 12 euros per share, i.e. 53% higher than the price on the day before the announcement of the intention to renationalise, and 34% higher. above the average for the previous twelve months, underlines Bercy.

The quotation of EDF, suspended on July 13, resumed and the course converged in the morning towards 11.75 euros.

The price is a key question for a group which, entered the stock market with a bang in 2005, saw its action plummet, from 32 euros at the end of 2005 to less than 8 before the announcement of renationalisation.

"The price of 12 euros per share seems clearly insufficient to us, particularly with regard to those who subscribed in 2005 and who kept their share", at 32 euros for individuals and 25.60 euros for employees, reacted Énergie in actions, an association that represents employee shareholders.

On Tuesday, EDF met its board of directors to create an "ad hoc committee", made up of four directors, one of whom was elected by the employees.

This committee will be responsible for issuing a recommendation on the interest of the offer, and finding an independent expert.

On this basis, the board will issue a reasoned opinion.  

The first stage of a vast project

This return of the State to 100% in EDF was announced on July 6 by the Prime Minister, Elisabeth Borne, in her general policy speech.

"This operation gives EDF the means necessary to accelerate the implementation of the new nuclear program wanted by the President of the Republic, and the deployment of renewable energies in France," declared Bruno Le Maire, the Minister of Economy.

The group, over-indebted, is faced with heavy financial burdens and vast industrial projects.

Emmanuel Macron announced the launch of a program of six EPR nuclear reactors, even 14, of which the only model currently under construction in France, in Flamanville (Manche), is more than ten years late.

EDF must also manage the upkeep of an aging fleet: more than half of its 56 reactors are shut down for maintenance or corrosion problems that have recently appeared.

Weighed down by a debt that could reach more than 60 billion euros at the end of 2022, EDF has seen its financial situation further deteriorated by the government's decision to make it sell more cheap electricity to its competitors to protect household bills.

100% nationalization should therefore only be the first step in a vast project.

Its priority issues: what regulation for the sharing of current nuclear power, whose revenues go largely to its competitors via the sale of electricity at low cost, and how to finance new nuclear power.

The whole thing will involve discussions with Brussels and possible reforms for the group.

"This is not the end of the projects that we have for EDF, both in terms of its production and its organization, but it is a very important step", says one at Bercy.

In this context, the State wants to announce a new governance in September, replacing the current CEO, Jean-Bernard Lévy, anticipating a departure linked to his age by a few months.

But already, the deputy LFI Éric Coquerel warns: "we are for a public energy pole".

But "it will be difficult for us to vote for an amendment [to finance the renationalization] without understanding what the project to come is," he told reporters.

The previous "Hercules" plan, fought by the unions, provided for a public unit including nuclear power, and another dedicated to activities open to competition.

The project has been suspended.

With AFP

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