Ardian and EDF to acquire French oil storage company
Date
September 15, 2015
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Total has signed an agreement to sell an interest of 50% plus one share in Géosel Manosque to a 50-50 consortium composed of EDF Invest and Ardian.The transaction values Total's interest at €265 million as at January 1, 2015, excluding inventory and is subject to the confirmation of the other Géosel shareholders and the customary regulatory approvals.
Total, which currently owns a 53.4% stake in Géosel, will remain a minority shareholder with an interest of 3.4% and will continue to use Géosel’s infrastructure, mainly to ensure logistics for its industrial facilities in southern France.With a capacity of almost 9 million m3, Géosel owns a critical site for the management of the French national oil reserves. The company operates underground storage caverns and related pipelines linked to the seaport of Fos, Marseille (France), and to the petrochemical facilities of Etand de Berre (Fos, Lavera, France). The company also benefits from very longterm contracts with its main client, SAGESS, the French strategic oil reserves manager.
Patrick de La Chevardière, Chief Financial Officer of Total, said:
“The sale of this infrastructure asset is part of our program to sell $10 billion in assets by 2017 and reflects Total’s active portfolio management strategy.”
The guarantees and strengths offered by the EDF Invest-Ardian consortium, for which this investment is a long-term commitment, make it a suitable majority shareholder in Géosel.
