CDPQ Exits Out of Fluxys
Posted on 09/27/2022
On September 23, 2022, a group of new shareholders has reached an agreement with Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec (CDPQ) to acquire its 19.85% participation in Belgium-based Fluxys. The new shareholders are Energy Infrastructure Partners, a Switzerland-based infrastructure investor focused on the global energy transition, and a consortium of Belgian institutional investors. The transfer is expected to be completed by the end of 2022.
Pre-deal, Publigaz-Publigas SCRL owns 77.4%, CDPQ owns 19.85%, Federal Holdings and Investment Company owns 2.12%, and Fluxys employees and management own 0.63% of Fluxys Europe.
Deal
Energy Infrastructure Partners is to take over the majority of CDPQ’s participation. An infrastructure investor and energy sector specialist, EIP has worked alongside Fluxys as a partner in FluxSwiss since 2016. EIP is set to continue CDPQ’s partnership in Fluxys together with Belgian investors AG Insurance, Ethias, and the Federal Holding and Investment Company, which is already a shareholder in Fluxys.
Daniël Termont is the President of Fluxys and representative of main shareholder Publigas in Fluxys. Fluxys is a company, mainly acting as a natural gas transmission system operator. Fluxys’ infrastructure comprised about 3,700 km of pipelines and a terminal in Zeebrugge, Belgium and the Dunkirk plant in France. Fluxys operates both the natural gas transmission grid and storage infrastructure in Belgium, making its cashflows dependent on regulated tariffs. Fluxys is listed on Euronext Brussels market.
GDF Suez was formed from the 100 billion euro merger of Gaz de France and Suez in 2008 and had been asked to relinquish control over Fluxys to secure European Commission approval to create Europe’s second-largest electricity and gas group. In May 2010, Belgian municipal holding company Publigaz-Publigas SCRL bought a 38.5% stake for 636 million euros in Fluxys from GDF Suez. GDF Suez changed its name to ENGIE SA. In June 2018, CREG, the federal regulator, set out a new tariff methodology for the transmission and storage of natural gas and LNG terminalling for the period 2020-2023. Shipping traffic at Zeebrugge LNG Terminal reached new heights in 2021.
Keywords: ENGIE S.A. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec.