The news site Bloomberg reported earlier today that the negotiations also include the nationalization of Uniper. The value of Uniper’s share fell sharply in the afternoon.
12:04•Updated 15:06
The energy company Fortum says it will continue discussions about the fate of its subsidiary Uniper with the German government.
The goal is to find a long-term solution to Uniper’s situation. According to Uniper, the parties are looking at various options, including increasing the German state’s stake in the gas company so that it becomes Uniper’s majority owner.
News website Bloomberg (you are switching to another service) said earlier today that the nationalization of Uniper is also on the table in the negotiations. Germany can increase its ownership to more than 50 percent and is also ready to take the historic step of nationalizing the country’s largest gas supplier to prevent the collapse of the energy system, according to Bloomberg.
The German state, Fortum and Uniper already agreed on a 17 billion euro rescue package in July. It was agreed that the German state will become a minority owner of Uniper with a 30 percent share.
After the conclusion of the stabilization package, the European energy crisis has deepened, Fortum says in its press release. According to the company, Uniper’s losses and uncertainty about its future prospects have “quickly and significantly” increased since July.
– The deterioration of the operating environment and Uniper’s financial situation must be taken into account when Fortum, the German state and Uniper continue discussions on a long-term solution for Uniper, the release states.
Fortum emphasizes that no decisions deviating from the package prepared in July have been made. Fortum did not comment further on the negotiations to .
Uniper’s share plummets
Uniper’s share price fell sharply after the news of the negotiations. The company’s share had fallen by about 20 percent on the Frankfurt stock exchange by 3 o’clock Finnish time. The value of the share was around 3.9 euros in the afternoon. At the beginning of the year before the Russian attack on Ukraine, Uniper’s share value was around 40 euros.
The energy company Fortum owns 56 percent of Uniper after the rescue package in July. The Finnish government, on the other hand, owns about half of Fortum, which is why the Uniper crisis also involves Finnish taxpayers’ money.
The background to Uniper’s difficulties is Russia’s reduced gas supplies and the sharply increased gas price. Uniper has had to purchase gas from other sources at a significantly higher price in order to guarantee deliveries to customers, but before the rescue package made in July, it was not able to transfer its increased costs to consumer prices.
In August, it was reported that Uniper was making a loss of one hundred million euros per day.
The story was updated at 14:22 with information from Uniper’s press release. Updated at 3:05 p.m. information about Uniper’s stock plummeting.
The subject can be discussed until Thursday, September 14 at 11 p.m.
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