| A worker checks a unit at Uniper’s Bierwang gas storage facility near the Bavarian town of Kraiburg am Inn, Germany, June 10, 2022. REUTERS/Andreas Gebert/File Photo |
German gas importer Uniper UN01.DE, its Finnish parent Fortum FORTUM.HE and their governments have agreed in principle on the terms of a bailout after Uniper was hit by high gas prices and dwindling Russian supplies, three sources told Reuters.
The deal would include the German government taking a stake and providing funding for Uniper, they said, though the final details were not immediately clear.
Fortum had no immediate comment and Uniper declined to comment.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz will hold a press conference at 1000 GMT on Friday.
Germany has been scrambling to rescue Uniper, which became a high-profile casualty of an economic standoff between the West and Moscow after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February.
Reuters has previously reported that Berlin was leaning towards taking a 30% stake in Uniper and that a deal would allow Uniper to pass on soaring prices to customers.
The government may also quadruple a credit line to Uniper via a state-owned bank, lifting it to 8 billion euros ($8.2 billion) from 2 billion euros, according to an economy ministry document seen by Reuters earlier.
Uniper, Germany’s largest importer of Russian gas, is losing cash daily as it is forced to buy supplies at much higher prices from alternative sources because Gazprom GAZP.MM has reduced deliveries.
REUTERS