Gas Natural incorporates again a local partner in Argentina
MADRID. Gas Natural has agreed to incorporate a local partner into its Argentine subsidiary Gas Natural BAN upon the agreement to sell 19.6% of its stake to the pharmaceutical group Chemo for US$ 35.9mm. The Spanish gas company will keep a controlling stake of 50.4% in Gas Natural BAN, as well as the marketing and supply companies of the subsidiary, and will continue to own its operations.
The sale has nothing to do neither with the incorporation of local Argentine entrepreneur Ezkenaxi into Repsol YPF nor with the situation of almost nationalization of the domestic airline company Aerolineas Argentinas, since this stake was always owned by the local partners up to the moment it was bought by Gas Natural, before participating in a bid with new local interested parties.
Consequently, by means of this transaction, the Spanish energy company –which is subject to due diligence being completed and the definitive execution of the acquisition agreement- gains an Argentine partner in its subsidiary Gas Natural Ban as it happened before when it started business in that country, in line with its policy to incorporate local capital into its international subsidiaries.
The deal made by Gas Natural- who recently bought Union Fenosa shares in Spain and is chaired by Salvador Gabarró – is in line with their goal «to build local partnerships to increase our presence in the countries where we operate». Thus, the company has local partners in its operations in Brazil (Petrobras and Banco Nacional de Desarrollo), Colombia (Empresa de Energía de Bogotá), and Mexico.
