E.ON bid for Endesa faces new hurdle as Italy's Enel buys stake

0 Comments | AFP, February, 2007

MADRID (AFP) — Italian electricity group Enel has bought 10 percent of Spanish utility Endesa and wants up to 24.99 percent of the company under a plan that appears to enjoy political support in Madrid and Rome.

The presence of Enel could thwart a long-running takeover bid by German giant E.ON for Endesa, which the Spanish government has resisted since it was launched in February last year.

Enel, 32 percent state-owned, announced late on Tuesday that it had bought its 10-percent stake in Endesa at 39 euros per share, above the 38.75 euros a share which Germany's largest power provider has offered for the firm.

The acquisition, which cost 4.1 billion euros (5.4 billion US dollars), is part of a strategy to strengthen Enel's position in the European...