Oil firm Repsol has bought back €2.57bn worth of its own shares from Spanish developer Sacyr Vallerhermoso, just 24 hours before Sacyr faced a debt repayment deadline. The deal has reduced Sacyr’s stake from 20% to 10%.
Sacyr had previously announced plans to sell half of its 20% holding in Repsol to repay debts incurred to acquiring the stake. While local and international media linked major firms including Sinopec to the sale, the company was unable to conclude a deal in time.
The sale sees the end of former Sacyr Chairman Luis del Rivero’s plan to extract greater dividends from Repsol through an alliance with fellow shareholder Pemex. Del Rivero was ousted as chairman in October, and a Repsol statement has confirmed that he has resigned from the oil company’s board.
"This decision enhances shareholding stability, allowing the management team to focus all its efforts on the execution of the company's strategic plan in the interest of all its shareholders," added the company, which said that helping to resolve any issue between Sacyr and its lenders benefited Repsol as a whole. "The lack of agreement between the banks and Sacyr would have produced a scenario of prolonged uncertainty, resulting in a negative impact for Repsol's share price and could additionally harm the company’s growth plans. In addition, the large number of banks involved and the disparity of their interests could have led to a massive and disorderly sale of Repsol's shares."
Repsol paid €21.066 per share, 5% less than the closing price on Monday. Stock markets welcomed the move, with Repsol stock rising to €22.44 per share. Repsol’s largest shareholder is now Caixabank, which holds 12.97%.
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