Links, Herbies lead on £2.3bn British Energy deal

Last September Centrica agreed to pay French energy giant EDF £3.05bn for a 25% stake in British Energy, but after shareholder pressure not to overpay in the wake of a fall in electricity prices, Centrica has now agreed to pay £2.3bn for a 20% stake.

Linklaters was instructed by long-term client Centrica, fielding a team headed up by corporate partner Owen Clay and projects partner Fiona Hobbs, working closely with Centrica's in-house team, which is led by general counsel Grant Dawson. EDF turned to regular adviser Herbert Smith.

The team from Herbert Smith was led by energy partner Mark Newbery along with fellow energy partners Jennifer Bell, Julia Pyke and corporate partner Simon Youdale.

Clay commented: "For Centrica, the UK's biggest household gas supplier, the deal is a major step towards its goal of reducing exposure to short-term volatility in the wholesale gas and power markets."

Last year EDF took over British Energy in a £12.5bn deal with Centrica investing around £3bn to take a 25% stake in all new nuclear plants built by EDF.

EDF and Centrica will now form an 80/20 joint venture to pursue a programme to build four new nuclear power stations in the UK. EDF will also acquire Centrica's 52% stake in Belgian generation and supply business SPE.

The deal is the latest in the line of high-profile mandates in the nuclear energy sector. Last month Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, Herbert Smith, CMS Cameron McKenna and Burges Salmon won headline roles on a £387m auction for land on which to build the next generation of UK nuclear power plants.