CK group announces deal to sell 100% stake in UK electricity operator for US$14.2 billion
Shares of group’s Hong Kong-listed entities rally on plan to sell UK Power Networks to French utility Engie
A consortium comprising CK Infrastructure Holdings, CK Asset Holdings and Power Assets Holdings has agreed to sell all of its interest in UK Power Networks to French multinational electric utility Engie in a deal worth £10.5 billion (US$14.2 billion), according to a joint filing issued before the Hong Kong market opened on Thursday.
The agreement was signed after trading hours on Wednesday in Hong Kong, London and Paris.
The announcement triggered a rally across the CK group’s Hong Kong-listed entities. During early Thursday trading, CK Hutchison, CK Asset, CKI, and Power Assets all saw gains of about 2 to 3 per cent.
The disposal comes at a time of heightened scrutiny of CK group’s overseas infrastructure assets, particularly its port operations at the Panama Canal, which have become entangled in geopolitical tensions between Washington and Beijing.
Under the agreement signed on Wednesday, indirectly wholly owned subsidiaries of the three Hong Kong-listed companies will sell their combined 100 per cent stake in the UK electricity distributor, along with shareholder loans extended to the business, to an entity fully owned by Engie.
UK Power Networks is 40 per cent owned by CK Infrastructure, 40 per cent by Power Assets and 20 per cent by CK Asset. It is one of the United Kingdom’s largest power distributors, comprising three regional networks with a distribution area that covers 8.3 million consumers in London, southeastern and eastern England, with power lines spanning around 192,000km. The CK group acquired the UK electricity operator in 2010 for £5.77 billion.