12/19/2014, 07:00
| Ad hoc announcement pursuant to Art. 53 LR
Lausanne – Alpiq has successfully made another step in the divestment process of its Swissgrid stake: The IST3 Investment Foundation (IST3) will acquire 49.9 % of a new Alpiq subsidiary, to which Alpiq will allocate its Swissgrid shares. In addition, IST3 will acquire 49.9 % of the Swissgrid shareholder loan belonging to Alpiq. Alpiq will use the proceeds from these two transactions to reduce net debt and for investments in new growth areas in accordance with its strategy.
The two transactions fully take into account the respective legal, statutory and corporate requirements. Transfer of the Swissgrid shares to the new Alpiq subsidiary, Alpiq Grid Beteiligungs AG, as well as the subsequent transfer of the 49.9 % share in Alpiq Grid Beteiligungs AG to IST3 are expected to take place in the first half of 2015. Incorporation in the Swissgrid share register and the sale of the loan tranche are subject to the approval of the Swissgrid Board of Directors. Alpiq retains the embedded conversion rights for the loan tranche.
At the end of May this year, Alpiq announced its intention to divest its share in Swissgrid. Together with the sale of the first Swissgrid shareholder loan tranche of CHF 75 million, which was announced on 28 November 2014, Alpiq expects total proceeds of CHF 363 million from the transactions executed thus far. In the meantime, the Swissgrid Board of Directors has already approved the sale of the first loan tranche for CHF 75 million so that this transaction can be closed in 2014.
Alpiq will use the sale proceeds to reduce net debt and for investments in new growth areas in accordance with its strategy.
At the beginning of 2013, Alpiq transferred its share in the Swiss high voltage grid to the national grid operator Swissgrid as required by law in return for loans and shares and currently holds a share of 34.7% in Swissgrid.
IST3 represents a Group of private and institutional Swiss pension funds. The group has established a platform for infrastructure investment under the umbrella of a Swiss investment foundation with the aim of making direct and indirect, cost efficient investments in infrastructure systems. The focus is on Europe, in particular on Switzerland. IST3 follows a conservative investment strategy focusing on ongoing distributions. IST3 has a very experienced investment committee comprising renowned national and international experts in infrastructure investments.