A
UK government sale of its one-third share of the uranium enrichment
company Urenco could lower the credit rating of the company, Standard
and Poor’s said.
Standard
and Poor’s said October 24 it has lowered its long-term corporate
credit rating on Urenco Ltd. to 'BBB+' from 'A-'. The ratings agency
confirmed the short-term corporate credit rating at 'A-2'.
Standard and Poor’s said the credit rating was lowered “amid projections of reduced demand and an uncertain industry outlook.”
S&P
said it retained its “stable” outlook for Urenco, but said any change
in the shareholder structure would be reviewed for potential impact on
the group and could lead to increased downside pressure on the ratings.
Urenco is owned one-third each by the UK and Dutch governments and by German utilities RWE and E.On.
The
UK has openly talked about selling its one-third share for years and
recently appointed Morgan Stanley as financial advisors for such a sale,
according to a September 29 statement from the UK Department of Energy
and Climate Change.
According
to the Financial Times, E.On and RWE are also keen to sell and have
appointed Bank of America Merrill Lynch to advise them on a sale. The
Dutch government is considered least likely to want to sell, according
to FT, but have appointed Credit Suisse as advisors.
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