Three bidders advance in Uniper sale, with potential valuation of up to €14 billion
Key Facts
Equinor and Centrica have advanced to the second round of the sale of German utility Uniper, joined by a consortium of Brookfield Asset Management and Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, according to a Bloomberg report published on November 14, 2026, citing people familiar with the process. The move puts three bidders into the next stage of Berlin’s effort to reduce its stake in the company it rescued during the energy crisis. Reuters reported that the next round will conclude with binding bids, moving the process from indicative offers to a more advanced contest for a stake in one of Germany’s largest energy companies. But qualifying does not determine the buyer, nor does it mean the government has chosen a direct sale. An initial public offering remains one of the options available to Berlin, while Uniper’s works council opposes a sale and favors an IPO as the better way to preserve the company’s independence.
By contrast, the KKR and RWE consortium and the EPH group did not qualify for the next round, according to a source familiar with the matter cited by Bloomberg. The list of bidders is therefore narrowing after two offers were excluded from the next stage, leaving two energy companies and an investment consortium comprising Brookfield and CPPIB in contention. The report does not name the other bidders or provide details of the financial offers, so their terms cannot be compared on the basis of the available figures. Reuters had reported that bidders submitted indicative offers in September 2026, then waited for a response from the German government. The process’s move to binding bids now indicates that Berlin has reached a stage requiring more specific proposals from the parties, without amounting to an announcement of a final decision on the sale.
The German government is looking to reduce its stake in Uniper to a blocking minority, through a sale to a strategic or financial investor, or by relisting shares, according to Reuters. The company could be valued at €14 billion including net cash, a potential valuation for the process rather than an announced price for any particular offer. Germany’s finance ministry controls a 99.12% stake in the company, according to the report published on November 14, 2026. This level of ownership means any deal would significantly reshape the company’s shareholder structure, while the form of the exit remains undecided: a sale to an investor or a return to the market through a public offering. The works council’s position carries weight in the debate; it believes an initial public offering, which remains a government option, would better preserve Uniper’s independence than a sale to a single buyer.
The German government’s near-total ownership dates to its rescue of Uniper in 2022, when it provided €13.5 billion to prevent the company’s collapse after Gazprom suspended gas supplies, according to Reuters. The company was Germany’s largest gas importer, the news agency said, making its distress directly relevant to supply security during the energy crisis. This background places the current sale process in the context of the state’s exit from a company it intervened to save when the gas crisis threatened its viability. An IPO would also allow the government to reduce its stake while keeping the shareholder base distributed, whereas a direct sale could transfer a large stake to a strategic or financial investor. The sources did not say that Berlin had decided between either path.
The company is entering the sale process with an upgraded forecast for adjusted net income in fiscal 2026 to a range of €550–650 million, while maintaining its forecast for adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization at €1.1–1.3 billion, according to Uniper. Chief Executive Michael Lewis said the company is investing in security of supply and the energy transition, and linked its dividend policy to a clear framework targeting “average annual dividend growth of 7% over the medium term.” These figures and management’s plans give bidders a picture of performance and strategy as the sale process advances, but the source did not link the earnings forecasts to the value of offers or the outcome of the bidding. The management board is scheduled to present the company’s strategy, medium-term investment plan and future earnings outlook at its Capital Markets Day in London on November 16, 2026. In the sale process, the next step will be the submission of binding bids, after which the government will have to choose between a direct deal and a relisting, with no final decision yet announced.