Centrica has announced plans to raise around £750m in a placing to fund acquisitions and cut debt.
The energy company, which owns British Gas, plans to issue around 350 million shares or 7% of its current issued share capital, it said in statement.
The company said the placing will enable it to secure two “prioritised and attractive” acquisitions to accelerate growth and develop capabilities in its customer-facing activities and reduce pressure on its credit metrics and its current strong investment grade credit ratings.
Centrica said in April it would buy Neas Energy, a Danish energy trader, to expand and complement its own activities in the European power markets.
The cost of the company is about £200million, including working capital. Another acquisition worth about £150million is also nearing completion, the company said in the statement.
Centrica said two acquisitions have been identified, “both of which deliver leading capabilities and double-digit percentage EBITDA growth potential, and will immediately contribute to earnings and cash flow once the transactions have closed.”
“However, the credit metrics required for the current strong investment grade credit ratings are under pressure.
%A 7% placing therefore allows c.£350m for acceleration of Centrica’s customer-facing strategy through acquisitions and c.£400m for lowering of net debt, reducing pressure on credit metrics and the group’s targeted strong investment grade credit ratings, in what remains an uncertain environment.”
“While the group continues to explore all options for repositioning its E&P business, the external environment means this is not straightforward, and reallocation of resources towards its customer-facing businesses is currently running below targeted levels,” it said.
The company said it remains on track to cut E&P capital expenditure to £500m in 2016, as part of its £1bn capital investment limit, and remains on course to achieve £200m of cost efficiencies and reduce direct headcount by 3,000 in 2016.
Goldman Sachs International and UBS are acting as joint bookrunners and corporate brokers.
