LNG

Naturgy Energy, the power company with LNG operations from Puerto Rico to Europe and pipeline gas networks from Algeria to South America, is no longer being targeted for a takeover by a company from Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.

TAQA, a power and water utility founded in 2005, had been in negotiations to acquire Spain's largest gas company, together with contracts with Algeria and also a long-term contract to import some 2.25 million tonnes per annum Russian LNG.

Under its formal name, Abu Dhabi National Energy Company (TAQA), the UAE company was aiming to acquire the stakes of equity funds that own a large proportion of Naturgy shares.

The UAE company, which is itself listed on Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), is an international energy and water operator with a presence in 11 countries.

Boardroom doubts

However, the board of Abu Dhabi's TAQA has decided to withdraw from negotiations that would have launched a joint takeover bid for Naturgy along with Spanish holding company Criteria Caixa

TAQA's decision to drop the joint bid with Spain’s Criteria Caixa was final, according to investment banks involved in the talks.

TAQA had initially said it was also in talks with two private equity firms CVC and GIP, each owning more than 20 percent of Naturgy, to acquire their stakes.

The Abu Dhabi company's talks with Criteria Caixa involved its ownership of a 26.7 percent stake in Naturgy and a possible partnership agreement between TAQA and Criteria Caixa.

Naturgy has a market value of €24.3 billion ($26.Bln), though the transaction was seen by analysts as complicated.

Naturgy posted net income for 2023 of €1.98Bln, which was an increase on the €1.64Bln logged in the previous year.

Gas portfolio

The Spanish company has widespread pipeline natural gas assets in Europe, South America and in North Africa, including the Medgaz Pipeline for natural gas connecting Algerian gas fields to Almeria in southeast Spain.

Naturgy holds a 49 percent stake in Medgaz while Algeria’s state oil and gas company Sonatrach owns 51 percent.

Other Naturgy divisions include thermal generation in Spain and with nuclear and gas-fired power.

Naturgy’s operations additionally include gas and power assets in Mexico, Panama and Argentina where demand has been increasing, as well as in the Dominican Republic and in the US Caribbean territory of Puerto Rico.

SDX Energy plc, the UK-based oil and gas exploration and production company, said it started drilling the Ksiri-21 well in the Sebou Central area of the Gharb Basin in the North African kingdom of Morocco.

Morocco has signed a liquefied natural gas supply agreement with Shell for a period pf 12 years that will initially see volumes shipped as cargoes to Spain and onwards as pipeline gas across the Mediterranean to Moroccan gas-fired power plants.

The Government of Algerian said it intended to increase its natural gas supplies to Italy to reach a total of around 27 billion cubic metres by the end of 2022.

Algerian national energy company and LNG producer Sonatrach said a contract worth $4 billion had been signed relating to supplying the European Union with natural gas through further development along with European and US oil and gas majors of blocks 404 and 208 of the Berkine Basin in Eastern Algeria.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said the European Union should pay for pipeline interconnections with Spain if they wish to have alternative supplies to replace Russian gas from Gazprom.

Algeria and Italy said they had signed an agreement for the North African nation to supply more natural gas to European Union member Italy to replace falling supplies from Russia.

Discussions have taken place in the Algerian capital Algiers between the Chief Executive of Italian oil and gas company, Claudio Descalzi and Algeria’s Prime Minister Aymen Benabderrahmane, the country's Energy Minister Mohamed Arkab and Algerian energy company Sonatrach's CEO Toufik Hakkar.

Italian energy company Eni has agreed to sell a minority stake in two pipelines involved in transporting natural gas from Algeria to Italy for €385 million ($435M) to Italian LNG terminal and gas grid operator Snam.

The kingdom of Morocco said it was considering setting up a fast-track floating LNG import terminal near the port of Tangier after Algeria carried out a threat to cut pipeline natural gas supplies to its North African neighbour, closing one of two trans-Mediterranean pipelines serving Spain.