Enel discussing energy price

The talks between Italian Enel Group and the Romanian State about the takeover of the local electricity distributors Banat and Dobrogea are now centred on the electrical power industry regulations, sources close to the deal say. At present, the parties have yet to agree on the value of the transaction, as the Italians need to get a clear picture of the long-term trend of the distribution tariffs first in order to prepare their bid accordingly, the same sources specify. The submission of Enel’s final bid for Electrica Banat and Electrica Dobrogea is expected for March 8. Sources close to the talks told Ziarul Financiar the general idea behind this was “an acceptable transaction, without stressing too much on tariffs but on guarantees for the investor. In principle, (the Romanian party) stresses on the recapitalisation of the company and therefore on a more extensive investment programme. As a general theory, if the investment commitment is very large, the price of the stake drops.” ZF