Why Terna Energy was sold to Abu Dhabi’s Masdar
Terna Energy is officially transferred to Abu Dhabi’s Masdar Group in a deal that values the Greek listed company at 2.4 billion euros. Together with the assumption of the company’s obligations, amounting to more than €800 million, the total value of the agreement between the two sides is €3.2 billion, making it the largest transaction in the field of energy that has been carried out at the Athens Stock Exchange and one of the largest overall.
The two sides announced the terms of the agreement on Thursday. At first, Masdar is going to acquire 67% of the company’s share capital, and then proceed with a mandatory public offer to the remaining shareholders, a development that will also mark the end of Terna Energy’s presence on the Athens Stock Exchange.
The price of the transaction was agreed at €2/share, which is considered particularly high (a multiple of 16 times the annual operating profits, compared to 10-11, which is the corresponding size for energy companies abroad). Market sources stated that this was done due to the high profit margins enjoyed by the company’s operating portfolio of RES projects, but also thanks to the secured volume of new projects, which the listed company has matured in terms of investment and licensing.
From the sale of its 53.63% stake, parent company GEK Terna will collect some €880 million.
This process should be completed by the end of the year, provided that the relevant approvals from the competent competition authorities are assured. Speaking on Thursday in the context of the annual general meeting, one of the company’s shareholders, Giorgos Peristeris, took stock of Terna Energy’s development path, noting at the same time that a key reason Masdar was preferred was that it is strategically active in the green energy sector.
As he mentioned, “this agreement is not made with an investment fund, which by definition has a speculative nature and a specific divestment time horizon.”
“On the contrary, it is done with a company that aims to strengthen its presence in the field of RES projects, which will remain in Greece and utilize Terna Energy so as to be its platform for the development of its activities in the wider region, investing several billion euros,” said Peristeris.
