China Three Gorges acquires Portuguese utility company EDP for $14 billion

Beijing. May 14. Silkroadnews - China Three Gorges has launched a €9 billion ($14.2 billion) offer to take full control of EDP, the Portuguese utility, in what would be one of the biggest Chinese takeovers of a European company, the Australian Financial Review reports.
76.7% of EDP shares were put for sale at €3.26 per share, which is 5.5% higher than the average closing price on Thursday at €3.09 and 17.9% above the average for the past six months.
The cost of the entire package will be € 11.8 billion, or about € 25.6 billion, including net liabilities. EDP has not yet commented on the proposal.
Reportedly, after a successful six-year partnership, during which the financial situation of EDP was stabilized, CTG expects to receive political support in Portugal. Nearly half of the company’s 12,000 employees are located in Portugal.
On Thursday EDP reported a 23% drop in net profit to €166 million in the first quarter. The company’s installed capacity is 26.8 gigawatts worldwide, of which nearly three-quarters are in renewable energy. Almost 60% of the company’s financial revenues are in Portugal and Spain, another 19% in Brazil and 16% in North America.
Other Chinese investments in Portugal after the financial crisis included the acquisition of a 25% stake in the national grid operator Redes Energéticas Nacionais by the state-backed China Corporation. China’s Fosun bought shares in Millennium BCP, Portugal’s largest bank, and Fidelidade, the largest insurer.
Similar deals across Europe prompted Germany, France and Italy to create a more stringent EU screening process to work with overseas acquisitions, similar to the U.S. Cfius system.