Fortum Considers Bid for EON's Fossil-Fuel Spinoff Uniper
- Finnish power company holds talks to buy EON’s 47% stake
- Uniper may attract interest from other companies, buyout firms
A cooling tower emits vapour at the coal-powered power plant operated by Uniper SE in Grosskrotzenburg, Germany.
Photographer: Alex Kraus/BloombergFinnish utility Fortum Oyj is in talks with Germany’s EON SE about acquiring its 47 percent stake in legacy fossil fuel and trading business Uniper SE as part of a plan to buy the whole company, according to people familiar with the matter.
Fortum is discussing a purchase of the German renewable company’s stake to lay the groundwork for a full takeover of Uniper, which is worth about 6.4 billion euros ($7.1 billion), said the people, who asked not to be identified because talks are private. Talks are ongoing and no final decision has been made, and Uniper could also attract interest from other companies and buyout firms, they said.