BERLIN (Reuters) – The German government is preparing for a possible state takeover of energy supplier Uniper, the country’s largest buyer of Russian gas, the business daily Handelsblatt reported on Tuesday, sending the stock market value plummeting. ‘company.
Uniper last week warned of the risks of tight gas supplies and soaring prices, an industry first, saying it had entered into talks for a possible bailout on public funds.
According to Handelsblatt, Berlin could subscribe to an issue of new shares which would give it a maximum of 25% of the capital. The article specifies that the government is also considering a “silent” equity investment, ie without the right to vote.
The amount of the operation could be between three and five billion euros, adds the economic daily.
Asked by Reuters, Uniper made no immediate comment. The Ministry of Finance declined to make any statement on the Handelsblatt article.
The government adopted a bill on Tuesday morning that allows Berlin to come to the aid of a company in the utility sector, such as gas and electricity companies, in the event of financial difficulties linked to soaring prices. Energy.
Uniper shares fell 6.27% to 10.61 euros at 2:55 p.m. GMT on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange after falling to 9.245 euros. The group’s stock market value has fallen by more than 70% since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which triggered the gas crisis in Europe.
(Written by Paul Carrel, with Tom Kaeckenhoff and Christian Kraemer; French version Marc Angrand, edited by Jean-Stéphane Brosse)
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