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Italian gas grid operator Snam has signed an agreement with Infinity Investments, an investment vehicle of Abu Dhabi's Investment Authority, to acquire a 24.99% stake in Vier Gas Holding (VGH), which fully owns Open Grid Europe (OGE), for €920m ($1.02bn).
OGE is Germany’s largest independent gas transmission company, overseeing a network that spans approximately 12,000km.
The company has an annual offtake volume of around 21 billion cubic metres (bcm) and serves more than 400 end customers.
This acquisition gives Snam a minority share in OGE, allowing it to participate in the German gas market and potentially expand its presence in Europe’s energy infrastructure.
Snam has also entered into a separate share purchase agreement with Belgian transmission system operator Fluxys to sell a 0.5% stake in VGH following the completion of the deal. This will result in Snam and Fluxys holding almost equal shareholdings in VGH.
The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter (Q3) of the current year.
Snam CEO Stefano Venier said: “Upon completion of this acquisition, Snam will become the first-ever Italian energy player to make a sizeable entry into the German energy infrastructure space.
“The acquisition strengthens Snam’s position as Europe’s largest gas infrastructure operator and is fully in line with our strategy, which focuses on the development of a pan-European, multi-molecule network located along the key European energy corridors, and in particular its most relevant corridor, running from southern to northern Europe.”
OGE's assets are strategically important to the European gas market, with 17 interconnections to seven bordering countries, particularly Germany, the largest market in Europe.
The German market is expected to maintain strong demand for gaseous fuels, partly due to the development of the hydrogen market.
The acquisition will extend Snam's gas pipeline network to more than 40,000km. It will also enhance Snam's involvement in the energy transition, particularly in the German Hydrogen Core Grid, aligning with the company's strategy to integrate with key hydrogen projects such as SoutH2Corridor, H2Med and SEEHyC.
Venier expressed the company's ambitions to grow further within Europe, specifically targeting "the southernmost part of the Mediterranean area", while indicating that there are no plans to expand to other parts of the world.
The acquisition will be financed through Snam's existing financial flexibility or hybrid financing instruments.
Snam has engaged JPMorgan as its financial advisor and White&Case as its legal advisor for this transaction.
