SGCC of China wants to buy shares in Transelectrica

State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC), included by Forbes among the ten largest companies in the world in 2010, is interested in becoming a shareholder in energy carrier Transelectrica (TEL).

Sources close to the discussions said, as quoted by Mediafax: "The Chinese company presented an offer to the Ministry of the Economy, including an amount, for the purchase of the entire stake of 15% of Transelectrica that the Ministry of the Economy intends to sell on the Bucharest Stock Exchange this year".

Last year, SGCC was ranked eighth among the top 500 largest companies in the world by Forbes, with 184.5 billion dollars in revenues in 2009, and was also designated as the world"s largest utilities provider.

The company has over 1.5 million employees.

The officials of the Ministry of the Economy have said that the sale of the shares of Transelectrica "will take place through methods specific to the capital market, namely through a public offering". "The price of the shares that will be sold, set and recommended by the authorized intermediary, will be approved through a government decision. As part of the bidding process, the potential buyers can subscribe for purchasing shares", a reply from the Ministry of the Economy states.

SGCC was created in 2002 and its main goal will be the building and running of electricity grids in China.

The Ministry of the Economy, the majority shareholder of Transelectrica, will sell a 15% stake in the company on the Bucharest Stock Exchange.

Moreover, the management of Transelectrica has proposed a share capital increase equivalent to 12% of the shares, which would be done simultaneously with the secondary offer.

TEL is controlled by the Ministry of the Economy, which holds 73.6% of the shares, whereas the Proprietatea Fund holds 13.5%. The shares of Transelectrica are traded on the BSE.

According to other sources from the energy sector, another Chinese company, China Huadian, has expressed its interest in becoming a shareholder of EnergoNuclear, the company which manages the project worth four billion Euros involving the construction of reactors 3 and 4 of the Cernavodă nuclear plant.