Parpública confirmed on Tuesday that the Portuguese State now holds 13.7% of REN, after completing the acquisition of 91.7 million shares in the company responsible for the national electricity and gas networks. The agreement was signed on August 14, marking the State's return to REN's capital on a scale large enough to become a reference shareholder.
With this operation, the Portuguese State now holds a qualified stake that simultaneously exceeds the thresholds of 5% and 10% of voting rights. Pontegadea Inversiones, the investment company of the owner of Zara, had previously announced the sale of its position to the State.
The value of the operation was not officially disclosed, but the Jornal Económico reported that the value stated in the contract sent to the Court of Auditors was 380 million euros. The operation was conditional upon the granting of approval by the Court of Auditors, and the Prime Minister justified the purchase with the need to safeguard national interest and lower energy prices.
Until the sale of its stake to the Portuguese State, Pontegadea Inversiones was the second largest shareholder of REN. The largest shareholder of the company that manages the national energy networks is State Grid Corporation of China, with 25%.
