Gut three and a half years after the German state bailed out the Düsseldorf energy conglomerate Uniper with billions of euros, the federal government is initiating a large-scale divestment of the company.
According to the “Süddeutsche Zeitung”, the finalized privatization concept put forward by the Ministry of Finance stipulates that the German state will reduce its shareholding in the gas and electricity provider. The government’s stake, currently at 99.1 percent, is planned to fall to 25 percent plus one share by the end of this year. The government remains open to several strategies for exiting its majority position, including selling blocks of shares to long-term institutional investors, conducting an Initial Public Offering (IPO), or combining both methods.
Uniper’s current stock market value stands at approximately 18 billion euros. However, analysts advise caution regarding this figure due to the extremely low trading volume, which could cause the stock price to drop significantly when the government offers larger quantities for sale. Despite this risk, Financial Minister Lars Klingbeil (SPD) suggests that the restructuring process is expected to generate high single-digit billions in revenue for the federal government.
The context for this sale dates back to late 2022, when the government intervened, providing a capital injection of 13.5 billion euros, after Uniper faced collapse following the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the halt of Russian gas supplies. The conglomerate is crucial to the economy, supplying natural gas to over 1,000 municipal utilities and industrial operations. To ensure continued influence in major energy policy decisions and to secure gas supply, the government intends to retain a stake of 25 percent plus one share even after the partial privatization. The remaining 74 percent of the company is earmarked for disposal over the coming months.
Entities interested in acquiring Uniper shares can register with the Ministry of Finance until June 12th. The government is specifically searching for strategic, long-term partners-such as large pension funds or major energy companies, like the Norwegian Equinor Group, which has previously shown interest. Pure financial investors, whose goal might be to quickly break up and resell parts of the company, are not the preferred target.
To maintain flexibility, the government is also preparing for a potential public listing of Uniper shares scheduled for January of next year. However, it is anticipated that the shares would not be offered all at once. Rather, the government is expected to take its time, possibly selling the shares in tranches until the end of 2028, to protect the price. While the ultimate sale could involve listing the full 74 percent of shares on the open market, the most probable scenario is that the federal government will onboard one or two strategic investors and sell a smaller portion, perhaps around 25 percent, through the stock market.