SAN DIEGO, June 9, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Sempra Energy (NYSE: SRE) and State Grid International Development Limited (SGID) have jointly announced today that both companies remain firmly committed to completing the sale of Sempra Energy's equity interests in its Chilean businesses, including its 100% stake in Chilquinta Energía S.A. (Chilquinta Energía), and are targeting June 24 as the closing date.
"As we move to close the transaction, our primary focus continues to be on the safety and well-being of our employees, customers and communities," said Dennis V. Arriola, executive vice president and group president of Sempra Energy. "We have received all the necessary approvals for the sale of our Chilean investments from the required governmental agencies in Chile and we plan to proceed with the closing with a target date of June 24."
In addition to Chilquinta Energía, Sempra Energy also intends to sell a 100% interest in Tecnored S.A., which provides electric construction and infrastructure services to Chilquinta Energía and third parties, and 100% ownership of Eletrans S.A., which owns, constructs, operates and maintains power transmission facilities.
"Our planned investment in Chile is very strategic to the overall long-term growth of SGID and we are fully supportive of the Chilean government's efforts to protect its citizens from the spread of COVID-19," said Hu Yuhai, Chairman of SGID. "Our Board of Directors remains fully committed to completing this transaction with Sempra Energy. We expect confirmation on the last remaining filing in China with the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) very soon."
In April, Sempra Energy announced the completion of the sale of its Peruvian businesses, including its 83.6% interest in Luz del Sur S.A.A., to an affiliate of China Yangtze Power International (Hongkong) Co., Limited, generating approximately $3.6 billion in total cash proceeds, subject to post-closing adjustments.
The sale of Sempra Energy's Chilean businesses is subject to various conditions to closing, including confirmation on the last remaining filing with the NDRC. The completion of the Chilean transactions will conclude Sempra Energy's planned sale of its South American businesses. Proceeds from the sales will be used to further strengthen the company's balance sheet and liquidity position.
About Chilquinta Energía
Chilquinta Energía is the third-largest distributor of electricity in Chile. Chilquinta Energía provides electricity to approximately 2 million people in the regions of Valparaíso and Maule in central Chile, and is also active in the development and operation of electric transmission lines.
About State Grid International Development Limited
SGID, a wholly-owned subsidiary of State Grid Corporation of China (SGCC), is incorporated in Hong Kong as a limited liability company. It leverages SGCC's operational strengths and financial support to actively pursue investment opportunities worldwide and improve the operating efficiency of its portfolio of companies. SGID currently has investments in the Philippines, Brazil, Portugal, Australia, Hong Kong SAR, Italy, Greece and Oman. SGCC, headquartered in Beijing, is the world's largest power utility corporation, and has extensive experience in constructing and operating electricity transmission and distribution networks. The company's power grid network covers 26 provinces in China, accounting for more than 88% of China's territory, and serves a population of over 1.1 billion. The company ranked fifth in 2019 Fortune Global 500.
About Sempra Energy
Sempra Energy's mission is to be North America's premier energy infrastructure company. With more than $60 billion in total assets in 2019, the San Diego-based company is the utility holding company with the largest U.S. customer base. The Sempra Energy companies' more than 18,000 employees deliver energy with purpose to over 35 million consumers worldwide. The company is focused on the most attractive markets in North America, including California, Texas, Mexico and the LNG export market. Sempra Energy has been consistently recognized for its leadership in sustainability, and diversity and inclusion, and is a member of the S&P 500 Utilities Index and the Dow Jones Utility Index. The company was also named one of the "World's Most Admired Companies" for 2020 by Fortune Magazine.
This press release contains statements that are not historical fact and constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements are based on assumptions with respect to the future, involve risks and uncertainties, and are not guarantees of performance. Future results may differ materially from those expressed in the forward- looking statements. These forward-looking statements represent our estimates and assumptions only as of the date of this press release. We assume no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other factors.
In this press release, forward-looking statements can be identified by words such as "believes," "expects," "anticipates," "plans," "estimates," "projects," "forecasts," "should," "could," "would," "will," "confident," "may," "can," "potential," "possible," "proposed," "target," "pursue," "outlook," "maintain," or similar expressions, or when we discuss our guidance, strategy, goals, vision, mission, opportunities, projections or intentions.
Factors, among others, that could cause our actual results and future actions to differ materially from those described in any forward-looking statements include risks and uncertainties relating to: California wildfires and the risk that we may be found liable for damages regardless of fault and the risk that we may not be able to recover any such costs from insurance, the wildfire fund established by California Assembly Bill 1054 or in rates from customers; decisions, investigations, regulations, issuances of permits and other authorizations, renewal of franchises, and other actions by the Comisión Federal de Electricidad, California Public Utilities Commission, U.S. Department of Energy, Public Utility Commission of Texas, regulatory and governmental bodies and jurisdictions in the U.S. and other countries in which we operate; the success of business development efforts, construction projects and major acquisitions and divestitures, including risks in (i) the ability to make a final investment decision and completing construction projects on schedule and budget, (ii) obtaining the consent of partners, (iii) counterparties' financial or other ability to fulfill contractual commitments, (iv) the ability to complete contemplated acquisitions and/or divestitures, and (v) the ability to realize anticipated benefits from any of these efforts once completed; the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our (i) ability to commence and complete capital and other projects and obtain regulatory approvals, (ii) supply chain and current and prospective counterparties, contractors, customers, employees and partners, (iii) liquidity, resulting from bill payment challenges experienced by our customers, decreased stability and accessibility of the capital markets and other factors, and (iv) ability to sustain operations and satisfy compliance requirements due to social distancing measures or if employee absenteeism were to increase significantly; the resolution of civil and criminal litigation, regulatory investigations and proceedings, and arbitrations; actions by credit rating agencies to downgrade our credit ratings or to place those ratings on negative outlook and our ability to borrow at favorable interest rates; moves to reduce or eliminate reliance on natural gas and the impact of the extreme volatility and unprecedented decline of oil prices on our businesses and development projects; weather, natural disasters, accidents, equipment failures, computer system outages and other events that disrupt our operations, damage our facilities and systems, cause the release of harmful materials, cause fires and subject us to liability for property damage or personal injuries, fines and penalties, some of which may not be covered by insurance (including costs in excess of applicable policy limits), may be disputed by insurers or may otherwise not be recoverable through regulatory mechanisms or may impact our ability to obtain satisfactory levels of affordable insurance; the availability of electric power and natural gas and natural gas storage capacity, including disruptions caused by failures in the transmission grid, limitations on the withdrawal or injection of natural gas from or into storage facilities, and equipment failures; cybersecurity threats to the energy grid, storage and pipeline infrastructure, the information and systems used to operate our businesses, and the confidentiality of our proprietary information and the personal information of our customers and employees; expropriation of assets, the failure of foreign governments and state-owned entities to honor the terms of contracts, and property disputes; the impact at San Diego Gas & Electric Company (SDG&E) on competitive customer rates and reliability due to the growth in distributed power generation and from departing retail load resulting from customers transferring to Direct Access, Community Choice Aggregation or other forms of distributed power generation and the risk of nonrecovery for stranded assets and contractual obligations; Oncor Electric Delivery Company LLC's (Oncor) ability to eliminate or reduce its quarterly dividends due to regulatory and governance requirements and commitments, including by actions of Oncor's independent directors or a minority member director; volatility in foreign currency exchange, interest and inflation rates and commodity prices and our ability to effectively hedge the risk of such volatility; changes in trade policies, laws and regulations, including tariffs and revisions to or replacement of international trade agreements, such as the North American Free Trade Agreement, that may increase our costs or impair our ability to resolve trade disputes; the impact of changes to federal and state tax laws and our ability to mitigate adverse impacts; and other uncertainties, some of which may be difficult to predict and are beyond our control.
These risks and uncertainties are further discussed in the reports that Sempra Energy has filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). These reports are available through the EDGAR system free-of-charge on the SEC's website, www.sec.gov, and on the company's website, www.sempra.com. Investors should not rely unduly on any forward-looking statements.
Sempra South American Utilities, Sempra North American Infrastructure, Sempra LNG, Sempra Mexico, Sempra Texas Utilities, Oncor and Infraestructura Energética Nova, S.A.B. de C.V. (IEnova) are not the same companies as the California utilities, SDG&E or Southern California Gas Company, and Sempra South American Utilities, Sempra North American Infrastructure, Sempra LNG, Sempra Mexico, Sempra Texas Utilities, Oncor and IEnova are not regulated by the California Public Utilities Commission.
SOURCE Sempra Energy
