Endesa Seeks to Win Over Minority

Spain’s Endesa plans to go ahead with an $8.02bn capital increase at its Chilean unit Enersis only if it can gain minority shareholder support, it says. “Endesa wants to make clear it only wants to go through with this operation if there is a broad consensus,” it says. Endesa planned to participate with up to $4.86bn in assets, a valuation arrived at by an outside source. Shareholders, particularly pension funds holding more than 10% of Enersis, and analysts have opposed the planned capital increase, saying the Endesa assets are overvalued. Regulators also found a conflict of interest in the plans, and imposed conditions – including a second valuation of its assets – that Enersis accepted. Enersis plans to use proceeds from the capital increase, designed to streamline Endesa’s holdings in LatAm, to fund merger and acquisition opportunities, advance greenfield projects and buy minority interests.