Romania To Sell 15% Stakes In Nuclearelectrica, Hidroelectrica In 2012

05.19.2011 By Florentina Dragu

Romania's Economy Ministry plans to sell stakes of 15% in state-owned energy producers Nuclearelectrica and Hidroelectrica in 2012, a ministry official said Thursday.

"My recommendation was to sell 10% (in the two companies)… The working numbers are 15% for both companies," said Tudor Serban, adviser at the ministry.

Serban said the public offerings will most likely be made in 2012.

In its latest letter of intent to a EUR3.6 billion loan agreement with the International Monetary Fund, the government pledged to sell minority stakes in several key energy and oil companies, including OMV Petrom (SNP.RO), Transelectrica (TEL.RO), Transgaz (TGN.

IMF mission chief Jeffrey Franks said early May that Romania will also sell over 10% in Nuclearelectrica and Hidroelectrica, adding that the exact percentage would be established at a later time.

"In the case of Hidroelectrica and Nuclearelectrica we agreed that we will look at the exact percentage later, but I think the word significant in this case is certainly less than 50%, because they (the Romanian government) don't want to sell the majority stake and I think it has to be somewhere more than 10%," Franks said at that time.

He said the decision to sell minority stakes in Nuclearelectrica and Hidroelectrica was made after the plan to create two energy champions was blocked.