OMV AG (Vienna, Austria) and MOL Group (Budapest, Hungary) announced an agreement for MOL Group to acquire OMV Slovenia. The agreement encompasses 120 filling stations, as well as OMV’s wholesale business in Slovenia. The transaction is subject to required regulatory approvals and closing is expected in 2022.
The agreed purchase price amounts to EUR 301 million (100% share). As part of the agreement, MOL Group will assume outstanding lease liabilities resulting in a total enterprise value for the business of approximately EUR 346 million. The purchase price is subject to customary net working capital and net debt adjustments.
This transaction will reduce OMV’s debt by approx. EUR 290 mn before consideration of taxes from OMV’s perspective (92.25% share), which will have a positive impact on OMV’s gearing.
“With this, we are taking another decisive step towards implementing our 2-billion-euro disposal program. This divestment not only contributes significantly to our deleveraging, it also means a further strategic optimization of our portfolio,” says Rainer Seele, Chairman of the Executive Board and CEO of OMV.
By Mary Page Bailey
Source: chemengonline.com
France has launched an offshore green hydrogen production platform at the country’s Port of Saint-Nazaire this week, along with its first offshore wind farm. The hydrogen plant, which its operators say is the world’s first facility of its type, coincides with the launch of another “first of its kind” facility in Sweden dedicated to storing hydrogen in an underground lined rock cavern (LRC).
The project sets up the Hydrogen Valley in Rome, the first industrial-scale technological hub for the development of the national supply chain for the production, transport, storage and use of hydrogen for the decarbonization of industrial processes and for sustainable mobility.
At first glance, hydrogen seems to be the perfect solution to our energy needs. It doesn’t produce any carbon dioxide when used. It can store energy for long periods of time. It doesn’t leave behind hazardous waste materials, like nuclear does. And it doesn’t require large swathes of land to be flooded, like hydroelectricity. Seems too good to be true. So…what’s the catch?
