Romania's major energy supplier, amid concerns about ties with Russia, did not sell a controlling stake to Hungary's MVM
Kyiv • UNN
Hungarian state energy company MVM Group and Romanian E.ON Group have mutually agreed to terminate the agreement for the acquisition of a 68% stake in E.ON Energie Romania and a 98% stake in E.ON Asist. The Romanian government did not support the deal due to concerns about MVM's ties with Russia.
Hungarian state energy company MVM Group announced that its agreement, signed in 2024 with Romanian E.ON Group to acquire a 68% stake in E.ON Energie Romania and a 98% stake in E.ON Asist, has been terminated by mutual consent, according to a statement on the Hungarian company's website, writes UNN.
Details
"The purchase agreement by MVM Group from E.ON Group, signed on December 16, 2024, for the acquisition of 68% of E.ON Energie Romania shares and 98% of E.ON Asist Complet shares is terminated today by mutual agreement," the statement said.
MVM noted that the Romanian government does not support the agreement, and that it "regrets" this.
At the same time, MVM stated that it "intends to continue strengthening supply security in the region through regional expansion." "MVM Group continues to work towards becoming a regional 'hub' in most areas of the energy sector, in addition to natural gas trading," the statement said.
Addition
E.ON announced the deal, which required approval from Romanian authorities, in December 2024. As Bloomberg notes, Hungary and Hungarian companies linked to Prime Minister Viktor Orbán are under increased scrutiny due to Budapest's close ties with Russia. The Hungarian energy company, as Bloomberg points out, imports Russian gas and operates the country's only nuclear power plant, which is undergoing a major reconstruction under Russian leadership.
As Reuters notes, MVM receives a significant portion of its gas from Russia, unlike energy suppliers in most European countries, and the Romanian Ministry of Energy stated in January that the sale could be blocked for security reasons. The Romanian Ministry of Energy stated that it was concerned about MVM's ties with Russia and the possibility that the Romanian energy supplier could later be sold to an organization outside the EU.
E.ON Energie Romania is one of the largest gas and electricity suppliers in Romania, serving approximately 3.4 million customers.