National Grid ditches stake in gas transmission unit

National Grid is ditching its 60 per cent stake in its gas transmission and metering arm to a pair of funds, it announced today. 

The firm which manages the distribution of energy around Britain will offload the stake to Australia’s Macquarie Asset Management and Canada’s British Columbia Investment Management Corporation.

The sale will raise around £2.2bn in cash for National Grid and implies the business is worth around £9.6bn.

“This transaction further enhances our role in delivering the UK’s energy transition, pivots our portfolio towards electricity, whilst ensuring the security of the energy supply for the country,” John Pettigrew, chief executive of National Grid, said.

The move comes as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has tightened a European gas market that was already suffering from a shortfall in supply.

Concerns about security of gas flows and gas scarcity have pushed prices to record highs. 

Elevated wholesale gas prices has caused smaller British energy suppliers who failed to hedge effectively to go to the wall.

Households are bracing a 54 per cent uplift to their energy bills next month. Experts expect the cap on bills to rise even further in October to account for higher wholesale oil and gas prices.