EDF Seeks Extra Capital

EDF, a major French utility, announced that they are seeking to increase their capital for venture projects in the UK nuclear sector.

In order to do so, the company may be willing to offload a further 20 percent stake in British Energy.The French utility had already sold a 20 percent stake in British Energy, a nuclear power company, to Centrica. EDF is believed to need to raise more monies due to the extra capital needed to fund another nuclear programme, as well as pay off some of the company’s existing debt.

No concrete details have been released in regards to which companies may be interested in the 20 percent stake. However, some reports indicate that Morgan Stanley or the Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund may be interested in a deal.

A spokesman for EDF has contradicted these reports, claiming that the company had no current plans to sell any more shares in the UK nuclear company. The company purchased the shares last year for £12.5bn.

EDF is also expected to reach a decision shortly on its distribution business- also based in the UK. The distribution business has been on the market since this summer and could  earn the company £2.7bn in extra capital.

The extra capital EDF is seeking is most likely to be used to build four planned nuclear reactors in the UK, which would replace several existing nuclear reactors scheduled to retire over the next decade. EDF also has debts from their acquisition of British Energy, as well as an acquisition of an American company, Constellation Energy.