Total Snaps up Spanish Gas & Power Assets

France's Total announced on May 18 it had struck a €515mn ($557mn) deal to acquire gas and power assets in Spain from Energias de Portugal (EDP).

The company is one of the biggest portfolio LNG traders globally and like Anglo-Dutch Shell it is looking for access to downstream markets for its equity production.

Total has set its sights on becoming Spain's fourth-biggest supplier of gas and power, with shares of 12% and 6% respectively in the country's residential market. The deal with EDP covers two gas-fired power plants with a combined capacity of 850 MW and a portfolio of 2.5mn customers.

Total said the business would complement the 2-GW pipeline of renewable energy projects it acquired in Spain in February. It will also help the French major work towards its goal of achieving net carbon neutrality by 2050.

"This is a major new step in Total's ambition to become a broad energy company. This transaction enables Total to become one of the key players in the energy market in Spain, covering a wide spectrum from LNG imports to power generation from renewables and gas, as well as gas and electricity supply," Total CEO Patrick Pouyanne said. "Our ambition is to be able to bring a competitive offer from our productions to the Spanish consumers, drawing on the digital and commercial know-how developed in France by Total Direct Energie and in Belgium by Lampiris."

Total aims to complete the deal, subject to regulatory approval, by the end of 2020. Its closure will see Total serving 8.5mn gas and power customers in Europe starting in 2021. Its goal is to reach 10mn customers by 2025.