Latest news with #EnergiaGroup
Irish Times
18-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Donohoe set to remove banker pay caps
A day after the Government said it would sell off the last of its stake in AIB, Minister for Finance Paschal Donohoe has moved to lift the State's remaining €500,000 executive pay cap at that bank as well as PTSB. As Joe Brennan reports, both lenders remained subject to a pay limit after restrictions were lifted at Bank of Ireland in late 2022, following the sale of the State's last shares in that lender. Joe also reports that Energia Group, the electricity and gas utility controlled by New York private equity firm I Squared Capital, handed a further €40 million of dividends to its owners in April, weeks after they pressed the start button a sale of the business. The payment, disclosed in Energia's financial accounts for the year to March, brings total distributions to more than €540 million since the US firm bought Energia, then known as Viridian, in 2016 for €1 billion. Why does Ireland struggle so much with infrastructure ? In his column, John McManus unpacks why this country has struggled with big projects for years and will continue to do so. Most of us would like to give to charity if we could, but not everyone has the spare cash to do so. In Money Matters , Joanne Hunt shows how it can be done. READ MORE Ireland's clean energy transition is mired in 'policy gridlock and incoherence', lobby group Ibec has claimed. In a new report, the employers' group is highly critical of what it describes as the lack of a 'clear and compelling vision' for what a net-zero economy 'means and looks like in practice'. Eoin Burke-Kennedy read the report. Dublin is the fifth most expensive capital city in Europe, but ranks far better for affordability when average wages are taken into account, according to the findings of a new report. Colin Gleeson reports. The Labour Court has set aside three days next month to hear an appeal by Elon Musk's X against a ruling that it must pay out an Irish record unfair dismissal award of €550,131 to a former executive. Gordon Deegan has the story. Irish goods exports to the US fell by 62 per cent in April after US President Donald Trump imposed tariffs on all European Union (EU) imports. The latest trade figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show export volumes to the US dropped by €16 billion in one month after Mr Trump's so-called 'liberation day' tariffs announcement. Eoin has the story. In Commercial Property, Ronald Quinlan reports that The Ivy is to open a second restaurant on Dublin's Dawson Street. Ronald also has details of a US investor poised to pay €120 million for three retail parks here, while a Merrion Square property in central Dublin is on the block for €4 million. Irish people are paying for news more than ever before, as podcasts experienced a 'surge in popularity ' last year according to the Digital News Report Ireland. Hugh Dooley has read the report. If you'd like to read more about the issues that affect your finances try signing up to On the Money , the weekly newsletter from our personal finance team, which will be issued every Friday to Irish Times subscribers.
BreakingNews.ie
30-05-2025
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Czech billionaire among expected bidders for Irish utility Energia, sources say
Daniel Kretinsky-backed Czech energy group EPH and Japanese trading house Itochu are expected to make preliminary bids for Irish utility Energia Group, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation. Other expected bidders include investors Ardian, Asterion and CPP Investments, the people said. Itochu is expected to form a consortium and CPP Investments may team up with Britain's Octopus Energy, which it is an investor in, one of the people said. Advertisement Kretinsky is also the co-owner and president of football club Sparta Prague, and director and major shareholder of English football club West Ham United. After being acquired by private equity firm I Squared for about $1 billion in 2016, a new sale could value Energia Group at more than €2 billion including debt, the sources and a third one said. Non-binding offers are due this week, the sources and a fourth one said. All four sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter is private. I Squared, CPP Investments, Itochu, EPH, Ardian, Asterion all declined to comment. Energia Group referred questions to I Squared and Octopus Energy did not reply immediately to a request for comment. Ireland Energy regulator proposes rules for data centres t... Read More Energia Group, which supplies approximately 17 per cent of Ireland's total electricity requirements, is the latest power company to draw investor interest following the acquisition of Electricity North West by Iberdrola last year. The company is an integrated utility with investments in renewables, power distribution, data centres and gas turbines. Energia Group recently secured permission to build a data centre in Dublin allowing its sale process to go ahead, three of the sources said. Reuters first reported last year that I Squared was exploring selling Energia.
CNA
30-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
Exclusive-Kretinsky's EPH, Itochu among expected bidders for Energia, sources say
LONDON :Daniel Kretinsky-backed Czech energy group EPH and Japanese trading house Itochu are expected to make preliminary bids for Irish utility Energia Group, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation. Other expected bidders include investors Ardian, Asterion and CPP Investments, the people said. Itochu is expected to form a consortium and CPP Investments may team up with Britain's Octopus Energy, which it is an investor in, one of the people said. After being acquired by private equity firm I Squared for about $1 billion in 2016, a new sale could value Energia Group at more than 2 billion euros ($2.27 billion) including debt, the sources and a third one said. Non-binding offers are due this week, the sources and a fourth one said. All four sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter is private. I Squared, CPP Investments, Itochu, EPH, Ardian, Asterion all declined to comment. Energia Group referred questions to I Squared and Octopus Energy did not reply immediately to a request for comment. Energia Group, which supplies approximately 17 per cent of Ireland's total electricity requirements, is the latest power company to draw investor interest following the acquisition of Electricity North West by Iberdrola last year. The company is an integrated utility with investments in renewables, power distribution, data centres and gas turbines. Energia Group recently secured permission from Irish authorities to build a data centre in Dublin allowing its sale process to go ahead, three of the sources said. ($1 = 0.8814 euros)
Reuters
30-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Exclusive: Kretinsky's EPH, Itochu among expected bidders for Energia, sources say
LONDON, May 30 (Reuters) - Daniel Kretinsky-backed Czech energy group EPH and Japanese trading house Itochu (8001.T), opens new tab are expected to make preliminary bids for Irish utility Energia Group, according to two sources with knowledge of the situation. Other expected bidders include investors Ardian, Asterion and CPP Investments, the people said. Itochu is expected to form a consortium and CPP Investments may team up with Britain's Octopus Energy, which it is an investor in, one of the people said. After being acquired by private equity firm I Squared for about $1 billion in 2016, a new sale could value Energia Group at more than 2 billion euros ($2.27 billion) including debt, the sources and a third one said. Non-binding offers are due this week, the sources and a fourth one said. All four sources spoke on condition of anonymity because the matter is private. I Squared, CPP Investments, Itochu, EPH, Ardian, Asterion all declined to comment. Energia Group referred questions to I Squared and Octopus Energy did not reply immediately to a request for comment. Energia Group, which supplies approximately 17% of Ireland's total electricity requirements, is the latest power company to draw investor interest following the acquisition of Electricity North West by Iberdrola last year. The company is an integrated utility with investments in renewables, power distribution, data centres and gas turbines. Energia Group recently secured permission from Irish authorities to build a data centre in Dublin allowing its sale process to go ahead, three of the sources said. Reuters first reported last year that I Squared was exploring selling Energia. ($1 = 0.8814 euros)
Bloomberg
27-03-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
I Squared Starts €2 Billion Sale of Utility Firm Energia
I Squared Capital Advisers, an infrastructure investment firm led by former Morgan Stanley executives, has kicked off the sale of Irish power producer Energia Group, according to people familiar with the matter. The Miami, Florida-based investor has started reaching out to potential suitors to gauge interest in the business, which could be valued at about €2 billion ($2.2 billion), the people said, asking not to be identified as the matter is private.
