EDF takeover of British Energy set to be signed off this week

Terry Macalister
The Guardian,
Monday September 22 2008

Lawyers for British Energy and EDF of France were completing the final paperwork on a £12.4bn merger last night amid hopes that the formal deal can be fully signed off and announced to the London stockmarket as early as tomorrow.
The move will hasten the government's nuclear revolution as EDF wants to use some of British Energy's sites to build a new generation of atomic power stations. The French company is expected to hand back some BE land so that the government can auction it off to others wanting to construct plants.
Previous attempts to complete a takeover of the UK's nuclear power generator foundered on BE shareholder discontent but Invesco and other minority investors have been brought on side by improved terms. They are being offered either cash or a mixture of cash and contingent value rights (CVRs).
EDF has raised its initial offer of 765p a share by 9p to 774p, but is also offering an alternative of 700p and some CVRs. These are used as a mechanism by which shareholders of an acquired company can receive additional benefits if a specified event occurs. In the case of British Energy, Invesco believes there will be further increases in electricity prices.
Neither BE nor EDF were willing to comment last night, but industry sources said a successful deal had been tied up, leaving the formal agreement and announcement only awaiting the legal work. "It [the transaction] will happen this week," said a source, although others said previous hiccups meant nothing should be taken for granted.
Dungeness in Kent and Bradwell in Essex are believed to be two of the facilities that EDF is willing to transfer to its rivals via an auction.
Both E.ON and RWE of Germany have indicated a willingness to build new stations. E.ON has already secured an agreement with National Grid about building new power lines from the Oldbury nuclear plant in Gloucestershire.
The site is one of three - along with Wylfa in Anglesey and Bradwell - said by the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority to be up for sale after discussions with interested buyers.
Part of Bradwell is owned by British Energy and part by the NDA, the government agency responsible for decommissioning all the UK's nuclear sites.