Sale of 25% in Vestmoldtransgaz to EBRD greenlighted

The competition body in Romania cleared the sale of 25% of Vestmoldtransgaz, currently fully owned by Romania’s Transgaz, to the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).

The transaction consists of a capital increase for Vestmoldtransgaz to which the EBRD will contribute €20mn, according to the details disclosed by the two parties previously.

The deal was announced by the EBRD last August.

It includes a put option that allows the bank to sell back the stake to Transgaz “at a predetermined price,” according to the EBRD’s note issued at that time.

In February 2018 Transgaz took over the 100% stake put up for sale by Moldova in Vestmoldtransgaz, at that time operating the gas interconnector with Romania.

In the meanwhile, it has built the key connection toward the industrialised area around the Moldovan capital Chisinau in a €90mn project.

Transgaz started technical tests on the Iasi-Ungheni-Chisinau gas pipeline in July 2020 but no significant exports have been carried out so far. Starting this October, Russian gas exports to Moldova will use this route as opposed to crossing Ukraine, as was the case so far.