Romania’s government reportedly bans sale of E.ON’s local utility subsidiary to Hungarian MVM

The Foreign Direct Investment Review Commission (CEISD), a body supervised by the Romanian government in charge of screening significant foreign investments for security impact, has not cleared the sale of E.ON’s electricity and gas supply subsidiary to Hungarian state-owned energy company MVM, according to sources familiar with the decision consulted by Economica.net. 

The Supreme Council of National Defence (CSAT) will make the final decision within 90 days.

The German group E.ON announced in December 2024 that it had reached an agreement with the Hungarian company MVM, with majority state capital, for the sale of its gas and electricity supply division in Romania and the services company E.ON Asist Complet.

The transaction was expected to close in the first half of 2025, and its value was not disclosed, but market sources indicated that it was about EUR 200-210 million.

Subsequently, the authorities in Bucharest announced that the transaction “will enter the complex approval circuit, both at national and European level,” which involves a detailed analysis of compliance with competition rules, but also analysis by the CEISD.

The CEISD notification was made by the Ministry of Energy, led at the time by Sebastian Burduja, and had several reasons, including the buyer’s ties to the Russian Federation, the risk of the subsequent transfer of E.ON Energie Romania shares to non-EU entities, or the unclear origin of MVM’s funds for this acquisition.

The MVM Group is the second largest company in Hungary and ranks sixth in Central Europe, according to its description. With an active presence in 23 countries, over 19,000 employees and a portfolio of over 11 million customers, both household and corporate (including almost two million in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Romania), the MVM Group is an important player in the energy ecosystem of the region.

E.ON Energie Romania is one of the largest gas and electricity suppliers in Romania, with approximately 3.4 million customers.

iulian@romania-insider.com

(Photo source: Facebook/E.ON)