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.
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SOURCE Sempra Energy