UK Watchdog OKs Brookfield’s SGN Acquisition

Britain’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has cleared Brookfield’s proposed acquisition of a minority stake in Scotia Gas Networks (SGN) without referring the $1.7 billion deal to a lengthy investigation, reported Reuetrs. 

In August 2021 British energy company SSE  agreed to sell its entire 33.3% stake in Scotia Gas Networks to a consortium of Canadian companies formed by the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board and Brookfield Super-Core Infrastructure Partners. 

SGN supplies gas to more than 5 million homes in England, Wales, Scotland and the west of Northern Ireland. The company, created in 2005, was awarded funding by industry regulator Ofgen in 2014 to develop research projects for the UK’s gas sector.

Britain’s competition regulator cleared Brookfield’s latest transaction, having considered the deal does not merit a so-called Phase 2 investigation, which could take up to 24 weeks as an in-depth review of the markets involved is carried out in order to determine the probability of any significant loss of competition in the markets.

Brookfield, a Canadian corporation that includes asset management activities and investment in various sectors, is a frequent player in the energy sector, with investments in energy producers in Europe, South America, as well as the UK and Canada.

Want more news? Subscribe to CPI’s free daily newsletter for more headlines and updates on antitrust developments around the world.