ContourGlobal unit inks USD-313m sale of Brazilian hydro ops

ContourGlobal Plc (LON:GLO), through its indirect majority-owned subsidiary Kani Lux Holdings Sarl, has struck a deal to offload its Brazilian hydropower business to asset manager Patria Investments for a total of BRL 1.73 billion (USD 313m/EUR 276m).

The operations, to be divested after an auction process, comprise nine run-of-river hydroelectric power plants, with 168 MW of capacity and operating under long-term contracts, a filing issued on Thursday showed.

Under the deal, the buyer will pay roughly BRL 898 million for 100% of the equity of Contour Global do Brasil Participacoes SA. Patria's unit Infraestrutura Brasil Holding XVII SA will also take on existing debt.

ContourGlobal itself expects net proceeds of some USD 110 million from the transaction.

The move is the first step in a strategy unveiled by the UK power producer last year to dispose of its renewables business in Brazil. ContourGlobal added it also plans to assess potential transactions for its other renewable assets, with the aim of bridging the gap between its stock valuation and that of its assets as valued by the private market.

Patria has also been granted exclusivity to potentially acquire ContourGlobal's wind power generation assets. The UK company expects to conclude that deal some time in the first half of 2022.

The transaction for the hydro plants is set to close in the second quarter of 2022.

ContourGlobal has a 6.3-GW wholesale power generation portfolio and operates 138 thermal and renewable power plants in Europe, North America, Latin America and Africa.

(BRL 1 = USD 0.181/EUR 0.160)

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