 | |
| Company type | State-owned enterprise (Societas Europaea) |
|---|---|
| FWB: UN01 | |
| ISIN | DE000UNSE018 |
| Industry | Electric utility |
| Founded | January 1, 2016; 9 years ago (2016-01-01) |
| Headquarters | , Germany |
Area served | Europe United States |
Key people | Michael Lewis (CEO) |
| Products | Electrical power Natural gas |
| Revenue | €107.915 billion (2023) |
| €6.308 billion (2023) | |
| Total assets | €64.694 billion (2023) |
| Owner | Government of Germany |
Number of employees | 6,863 (2023) |
| Subsidiaries | Unipro |
| Website | www |
Uniper SE is a German multinationalenergy company based inDüsseldorf, Germany, which has been astate-owned enterprise since late 2022. It is one of the biggest energy companies by revenue in Europe.[1] The name of the company is aportmanteau of "unique" and "performance",[2][3] which was given by long-term employee Gregor Recke.[4] Uniper was formed by the separation ofE.ON'sfossil fuel assets into a separate company that began operating on 1 January 2016.[5] In 2019, the company employed about 6,800 people in over 40 countries.[6][7] In 2018, around one-third of the employees were based in Germany.[8] Until 2022, it owned a subsidiary company in Russia calledUnipro. Uniper was listed on theFrankfurt Stock Exchange.
The company has faced criticism for opening new coal-fueled power plants in Germany as recently as May 2020.[9] Uniper was one of the financiers of theNord Stream 2 project, which the German government suspended two days before the2022 Russian invasion of Ukraine.[10] The company wasnationalised in December 2022.[11]
The split of the majority of E.ON's 'upstream' electricity generation business from its 'downstream' retail and distribution business was first announced in April 2015.[2] The company became active on 1 January 2016, with 14,000 employees and is expecting an operating profit (EBITDA) of €4 billion.[12][13] Arranged below Uniper SE were the Uniper Beteiligungs GmbH and the Uniper Holding GmbH, the latter functioning asholding company for the operative companies such as the Uniper Kraftwerke GmbH.[5] The onlynuclear plants in Uniper are Swedish, because German government rules aim to stop companies avoiding nuclear clean-up costs.[14]
In June 2016, the shareholders' meetings of E.ON SE and Uniper SE decided to spin off Uniper from E.ON.[5] It took place through a retrospective transfer of Uniper's business to 195 million new shares created by an increase in noncash capital as of January 1, 2016.[15] It was intended to deconsolidate Uniper from E.ON in the first half of 2017.[5] E.ON sold a 53% stake in the business through a listing on theFrankfurt Stock Exchange on 12 September 2016.[16]
In November 2017, Uniper completed the sale of its stake in the Russian gas fieldYuzhno-Russkoye. The Uniper share of 25% was sold for €1.749 billion, plus the transferred liquid funds to the AustrianOMV Group.[17]
In September 2017, Finnish power companyFortum announced it would buy E.ON's remaining 47% stake in Uniper and make a bid for the other 53% held by other shareholders, valuing Uniper at €8 billion. A takeover bid was submitted on 7 November 2017. E.ON accepted the offer on 8 January 2018.[18] Fortum acquired, in total, a 47.35% stake. The deal was completed on 26 June 2018, after approval by various authorities.[19] As of August 18, 2020, Fortum held a 75.01% stake in Uniper.[20]
On 4 July 2019, Uniper andEPH ("Energetický a průmyslový holding a.s.") signed the agreements for the sale of Uniper's activities in France. The scope of transaction includes Uniper's French sales business, twogas-fired power plants in Saint-Avold (Lorraine), two coal-fired power plants in Saint-Avold and Gardanne (Provence), the biomass power plant "Provence 4 Biomasse" in Gardanne and wind and solar power plants.[21]
Russia's war in Ukraine highlighted the dilemma that Germany faces regarding Russian assets held by German companies, and severely disrupted the company's operations.[22] Uniper announced on 28 April 2022 that it would pay for Russian gas inrubles, in a move that the BBC described as "giving in to Russian demands and helping to undercutEU sanctions on Russia".[23]
In July 2022, theGerman government andFortum agreed to bailout Uniper a €15 billion rescue deal after being severely affected by reduced supplies and high prices following theenergy standoff with Russia.[24] Germany agreed to pay €267 million for a stake in the ownership of Uniper, while also offering the firm up to €7.7 billion in financing.[25] Under the bailout, a record in German corporate history, the government will take a 30% stake in Uniper, reducing the ownership of Fortum to 56%.[26]
In 2022 Uniper filed a lawsuit against Russia’sGazprom, claiming €11.6 billion for damages following shortfalls and breach in gas supply under their long term contract.[27]
On 20 September 2022,Bloomberg News reported that the German government intended tonationalize the company, purchasing the remainder ofFortum's stake and becoming Uniper's sole owner.[28] News of the transaction caused Uniper shares to decline and a sharp spike in Fortum's share price, resulting in a halt in trading of the latter.[28] Finland'sMinister of Ownership SteeringTytti Tuppurainen stated that Finland would not accept the nationalisation of Uniper without a level of compensation being paid.[29] The German government's intention to nationalize the company was formalized the next day.[30] Germany will spend $8 billion to acquire a 99% stake in the company.[31] Uniper published a €40b loss for the first 3 quarters of 2022.[32] The nationalisation was completed in late December 2022.[11]
It was reported in October 2022 that Uniper was "shutting half the office space in its headquarters and lowering temperatures in areas remaining open to save gas" as it struggled to stay afloat ahead of its impending nationalisation.[33]
In April 2023 Russia seized the assets of Uniper Russia, including Uniper's 83.73% stake in Unipro which had already been revalued down to €1.[34]
On 7 June 2024, an arbitration tribunal in Stockholm awarded Uniper over 13 billion euros in damages for gas not supplied by Russia's Gazprom since 2022, also allowing Uniper to terminate long-term contracts with Gazprom. The German government had nationalized Uniper in late 2022 after Russia cut gas supplies, leading Uniper to incur significant costs by purchasing gas at higher market prices.[35]
Uniper operates in theEU countriesGermany,Sweden, theNetherlands,Belgium, andHungary. Outside of the EU it operates in theUnited Kingdom, and has offices in theUnited States,Azerbaijan,Singapore, and theUnited Arab Emirates.[36] The company used to operate inRussia until 2022. In addition to the fossil fuel power generation assets it owns hydropower and nuclear power assets in Sweden. Together,Fortum and Uniper are running theOskarshamn nuclear power plant and are both involved in theForsmark nuclear power plant. Both operatehydropower plants in Sweden.
With 34 GW generating capacities,[6] Uniper is one of the largest European electricity producers.[37][38] Uniper Global Commodities SE trades on the spot and futures market for gas, coal, freight, oil,liquefied natural gas and emission rights on different stock markets and on the over-the-counter-market.[39] Uniper Energy Storage GmbH is responsible for gas storage activities in Europe. The Power-to-Gas plants WindGas Falkenhagen and WindGas Hamburg store renewable energy in the form of electricity, gas or heat. Through electrolyzing, the gained wind energy is transformed into hydrogen and fed into the local gas network.[40] The Uniper Energy Storage GmbH operates gas storages with a capacity of 9 billion cubic metres (3.2×1011 cubic feet) in Germany, Austria, and the United Kingdom.[8]
List of power stations of Uniper outside Germany (for power stations in Germany seede:Uniper Kraftwerke):
| Location | Energy source | Power | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Connah's Quay | Natural gas | 1380 MW | |
| Cottam | Natural gas | 395 MW | |
| Isle of Grain | Natural gas | 1275 MW | |
| Enfield | Natural gas | 408 MW | |
| Killingholme | Natural gas | 600 MW | |
| Taylors Lane (Willesden) | Oil | 132 MW | |
| Ratcliffe-on-Soar Power Station | Coal | 2000 MW | Decommissioned |
| Nuclear power plant Oskarshamn | Nuclear energy | 2308 MW | 54.4% share |
| Nuclear power plant Ringhals | Nuclear energy | 3820 MW | 29.6% share |
| Nuclear power plant Forsmark | Nuclear energy | 3157 MW | 8.5% share |
| Maasvlakte | Coal | 2180 MW | |
| Rotterdam | Natural gas | 269 MW | |
| Den Haag | Natural gas | 112 MW | |
| Leiden | Natural gas | 83 MW | |
| Maasvlakte | Natural gas | 78 MW | |
| Vilvoorde | Natural gas | 265 MW | |
| Gönyü | Natural gas | 428 MW |
In addition, Uniper owns more than 70 hydropower plants with a capacity of 1,553 MW in Sweden.
According to the 2017 Sustainability Report, thepower production (totalling 120.8TWh in 2017) byprimary energy source was:[41]
| TWh | ||
|---|---|---|
| energy source | 2017 | 2016 |
| Gas/Oil | 61.9 | 73 |
| Hard coal | 24.3 | 31.2 |
| Nuclear | 11.1 | 13.6 |
| Hydro | 11.8 | 11 |
| Lignite | 11.5 | 9.7 |
| Renewables | 0.2 | 0.2 |
The supervisory board consist of twelve members. Six members have been appointed by the general meeting, six by the employees through an election set up by Uniper SE. The shareholder representatives are Markus Rauramo (Chairman), Dr. Bernhard Günther (Deputy Chairman), Prof. Dr. Werner Brinker, Judith Buss, Esa Hyvärinen and Nora Steiner-Forsberg. The employee representatives in 2022 were Harald Seegatz (deputy chairman), Holger Grzella, Diana Kirschner, Victoria Kulambi, Magnus Notini and Immo Schlepper.[42]
In January 2023 Uniper announced that Klaus-Dieter Maubach used his right of cancellation and would quit as CEO in March that year. Additionally COO David Bryson and CFO Tiina Tuomela made their resignations public.[43] On 1 March 2023 Michael Lewis, former CEO ofE.ON UK, was appointed as new Uniper CEO.[44] Lewis starts as CEO on 1 July 2023.[45] Jutta Dönges became new CFO and Holger Kreetz followed Bryson as COO.[46]
The key trends for Uniper are, as of each financial year:[47]
| Year | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total revenue (€ mn.) | 72,238 | 78,176 | 65,804 | 50,968 | 163,979 | 274,121 | 107,915 |
| Net profit (€ mn.) | −656 | −452 | 610 | 397 | −4,169 | −18,979 | 6,308 |
| Total Assets (€ mn.) | 48,302 | 57,675 | 49,424 | 44,637 | 157,478 | 146,489 | 64,694 |
| Number of employees | 12,180 | 11,780 | 11,532 | 11,751 | 11,494 | 7,008 | 6,863 |
| International | |
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| National | |
