TotalEnergies has agreed to buy a 50% stake in Czech billionaire Daniel Křetínský’s electricity generation business, Energetický a průmyslový holding (EPH), for €5.1 billion (£4.5 billion). The deal will give Křetínský around 4.1% of TotalEnergies’ share capital and make him one of the French oil company’s largest shareholders.
The transaction will establish a 50/50 joint venture between TotalEnergies and EPH, covering electricity generation assets across the UK, France, the Netherlands, and Italy. The UK portfolio includes Lynemouth power station in Northumberland and Kilroot power plant in Northern Ireland, sufficient to meet the electricity demand of more than three million homes.
Křetínský Becomes Major Shareholder
Daniel Křetínský, chair of EPH, said his company is “highly interested in becoming a long-term anchor shareholder of TotalEnergies” and aims to create a joint venture that is “a leading player in European flexible power generation.”
Křetínský, ranked 22nd on the Sunday Times rich list with an estimated fortune of £7.79 billion, owns stakes in Royal Mail, West Ham United football club, Sainsbury’s, Macy’s, Foot Locker, and German retailer Metro. He completed the acquisition of Royal Mail’s parent company earlier this year, becoming its first foreign owner in 509 years.
Strategic Benefits for TotalEnergies
Patrick Pouyanné, chair and chief executive of TotalEnergies, said the deal allows the company to “fully capitalise on gas-to-power integration and create added value for our liquefied natural gas (LNG) chain, independently of oil cycles.”
TotalEnergies is a leading gas importer into Europe and the joint venture will provide a network of customers for its gas while expanding its power trading operations. The company also continues to operate in the UK’s North Sea oil and gas fields and is developing offshore windfarms and solar projects in England and Wales.
UK Energy Sector Context
In a separate development, Eclipse Power Networks, part of the Octopus Group, has agreed to buy about 20 electricity distribution projects across the UK from Sweden’s state-owned energy company Vattenfall. The sum of the deal was not disclosed. This acquisition brings the assets under Octopus Group, which also owns Octopus Energy, Britain’s largest energy supplier. Vattenfall will exit the UK electricity distribution market but retain its other operations, including onshore and offshore windfarms.
The EPH–TotalEnergies deal and the Octopus acquisition highlight ongoing consolidation in the European energy sector, as companies expand generation capacity and distribution networks amid changing energy demand and a shift towards renewable sources.
Background on EPH and TotalEnergies
EPH operates coal, gas, and power generation businesses across Europe. TotalEnergies, headquartered in France, is a global oil and gas company expanding into renewables and electricity trading. The new joint venture combines EPH’s power generation portfolio with TotalEnergies’ gas supply and trading capabilities, aiming to strengthen both companies’ positions in the European energy market.
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