State takeover of EDF proceeds after appeal rejected : Company

May 03, 2023

The French state has asked the country’s Financial Markets Authority (AMF) to reopen a simplified public tender offer for EDF’s outstanding shares after the Paris Court of Appeals rejected claims brought by minority shareholders in EDF against the deal.

(Image: EDF)

EDF’s board of directors on October 27 last year approved the French state’s bid to re-nationalise the company by increasing its shareholding in EDF from 84% to 100% in a deal worth nearly EUR 10 billion (USD 11 billion).

The following month, AMF approved a simplified public tender offer submitted by the French state for EDF equity securities, at an offering price of EUR12.00 per EDF share and EUR15.52 per OCEANE (the existing shares were not yet held by the French state). Offer open from November 24 to December 22 inclusive.

A group of minority shareholders took the case to the Paris Court of Appeal on the grounds that the price offered to EDF shareholders was too low. Employee shareholder fund EDF Actions and the non-profit organization Energie En Actions and Association pour la Défense des Actionnaires Minoritaires are seeking an overturn of the permit decision on the offering.

The AMF announced in late January that its simplified public tender offer would close on February 3, pending the decision of the Paris Court of Appeal.

The court has now dismissed the claim, affirming the validity of the offer in light of the applicable legislative and regulatory provisions.

The AMF said that, in accordance with the efforts of the French State, bidding will be “re-opened for a period of 10 trading days from 4 May 2023 to 17 May 2023 inclusive”.

“After this period, the State of France will request the implementation of the blackmail procedure for shares of EDF and OCEANE, as the legal and regulatory conditions for such implementation will be met,” the EDF said.

Researched and written by World Nuclear News