Iberdrola sells stakes in Brazilian company

Iberdrola has sold to Brazilian holding company Neoenergia, in which it holds a 39% stake, all of its stake in Companhia de Electricidade do Estado da Bahia (Coelba) and Companhia Energética do Rio Grande do Norte (Cosern).

Under an agreement signed on 27 February 2015, Neoenergia has paid approximately €192 million (US$206.8 million) for the firms. Specifically, Iberdrola sold its 8.5% stake in Coelba for about €160 million and its 7.01% stake in Cosern for about €32 million.

Iberdrola will receive payment plus corresponding interest calculated at a rate of 12.19% per annum over a three year period. It is estimated that the transaction will generate a gross capital gain at the consolidated level in 2015 of approximately €69 million.

Coelba and Cosern are, along with Celpe (Companhia Energética de Pernambuco), the three Brazilian electricity distribution companies controlled by the Neoenergia holding. Last year, Coelba supplied 18,380 GWh (+4.2%) of electricity to 5.6 million customers while Cosern distributed 5,462 GWh (+4.8%) of electricity to 1.3 million customers.

The transaction closed on Friday by Iberdrola is part of the firm's divestment plan, which aims at further consolidating the group's financial strength. According to Iberdrola’s 2014-2016 outlook, presented last year in London, the company plans to divest €2,500 billion in non-strategic assets and countries in the 2012-2016 period, of which it has so far divested more than €2,375 billion, representing 95% of the total target.

The main transactions carried out by Iberdrola over the past year include the sale of 6.6% of Energias de Portugal (EDP) for €660 million; the sale of its 25% stake in Bahia Bizkaia Electricidad (BBE) to BP Global Investments for €111 million; the disposal of 50% of NuGen, the company developing British nuclear project Moorside, to Toshiba for €107 million; and 22.6% of Itapebi Geraçao de Energia, S.A., which owns the Itapebí hydroelectric plant, to Neoenergia for €99 million.

In early March we reported that Iberdrola USA, a wholly owned subsidiary of Iberdrola S.A., and UIL Holdings, a diversified energy delivery company, had agreed to merge businesses in the U.S.