Total secures 95% stake in France's Direct Energie

French oil major Total SA (EPA:FP) has built a stake of over 95% in electricity and gas supplier Direct Energie SA (EPA:DIREN) and intends to request a squeeze-out for the remainder of the shares.

As announced in July, Total bought a 73.04% stake in the firm for about EUR 1.4 billion (USD 1.64bn) in total and then launched a mandatory tender offer for the rest of the shares at EUR 42.00 apiece.

Now, Total has acquired an additional 9.35 million shares under the centralised procedure managed by Euronext Paris plus 1 million shares on the market. As a result it holds 95.37% of the share capital and at least 95.33% of the voting rights of the company. The planned squeeze-out will be executed at the same price of EUR 42.00 per share.

Direct Energie provides electricity and gas to more than 2.6 million residential and non-residential customers in France and Belgium. According to a previous announcement, the firm has 1.35 GW of installed capacity, of which 800 MW gas-fired power and 550 MW renewable electricity, including onshore wind, solar, hydro and biogas. Its project portfolio includes a 400-MW gas-fired power plant and a 2-GW pipeline of renewable electricity projects in France.

(EUR 1.0 = USD 1.170)

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