With just over a week to go before the deadline, a broad field of interested parties is emerging for a potential acquisition of the nationalized energy giant Uniper, according to sources. The Canadian investment firm CPPIB and Czech billionaire Daniel Kretinsky's EPH holding company are expected to enter the race, several people familiar with the matter told Reuters on Tuesday. Parties must express their interest in the power plant operator and Germany's largest gas group to the organizers of the sale process, banks UBS and JP Morgan, by June 12. The price tag could exceed ten billion euros.

The federal government nationalized Uniper during the 2022 energy crisis to prevent a looming bankruptcy. The utility had fallen into distress following the cessation of Russian gas supplies. In exchange for the bailout, the EU Commission mandated the sale of various holdings. Furthermore, the federal government must reduce its stake in Uniper to 25 percent plus one share by 2028. A 74.12 percent stake is now expected to change hands.

SOURCES: SECOND ROUND WITH BINDING OFFERS EXPECTED IN SUMMER

According to the sources, interested parties include the Norwegian oil and gas group Equinor, the Canadian investment firm Brookfield, and the French energy giant TotalEnergies. The Finnish energy group Fortum, which once held a majority stake in Uniper, has reportedly expressed interest in Uniper's hydroelectric and nuclear power plants in Sweden. It is also possible that Essen-based rival RWE could enter the sale process, according to three people familiar with the matter. Consortia involving multiple bidders are also a possibility. The Federal Ministry of Finance and the aforementioned companies declined to comment.

Interested parties are not required to submit binding bids in the first round. However, the seller is also withholding sensitive information at this stage. A second round with indicative bids is planned for the summer, the sources said. A decision could be reached in the autumn. It is also conceivable that the federal government might first sell a block of shares to an investor and later offload further stakes on the stock exchange. A shift of interested parties toward the sale process for the likewise nationalized Sefe group is also possible. The estimated price for Uniper ranges from 8.8 billion to 11.4 billion euros, plus 4.4 billion euros in cash reserves held by Uniper.

(Report by Christoph Steitz, with contributions from Tom Kaeckenhoff, Jan Lopatka, America Hernandez, Nora Buli and Holger Hansen, edited by Sabine Wollrab. For inquiries, please contact our editorial office at berlin.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for politics and economics) or frankfurt.newsroom@thomsonreuters.com (for companies and markets).)

- by Christoph Steitz