KKR to acquire 25% stake in Eni’s biofuels arm, valuing it at $12.7 billion Reuters

By Francesca Landini

MILAN (Reuters) – Italian energy group Eni said on Thursday that U.S. fund KKR will take a 25 percent stake in Enilive in a deal that values ​​the entire biofuels business at 11.75 billion euros ($12.7 billion), including debt.

The purchase of KKR’s stake for 2.938 billion euros improves Eni’s financial position while ensuring that it retains control of Enilive, the Italian company said.

The agreement is part of Eni’s strategy to spin off growth businesses through co-investors.

The transaction will be through a capital increase of 500 million euros for Enilive, which will be reserved for KKR, plus the sale of Enilive shares held by Eni for 2.438 billion euros.

Eni will also inject €500 million into Enilive before the KKR deal closes, ensuring the business is debt-free.

“This agreement marks a significant further step in our business strategy related to the energy transition,” Eni CEO Claudio Descalzi said in a statement.

JP Morgan and Mediobanca (OTC:) acted as financial advisors to Eni. Deutsche Bank and Unicredit (BIT:) were financial advisors to KKR, with Kirkland & Ellis and Gianni & Origoni acting as legal advisors.

In a similar deal last March, the Italian energy group floated the capital of its retail and renewable energy subsidiary Plenitude, handing over a minority stake to Swiss asset manager Energy Infrastructure Partners.

($1 = 0.9270 EUR)

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