Capital Calls: Risky banks, UK SPAC, AO World 23 Nov 2021 Concise views on global finance: A global watchdog reckons JPMorgan is once again the world’s most systemically important lender; investment firm Hambro Perks launches a UK blank-cheque vehicle; the British online retailer issues its second profit warning in two months.
Capital Calls: Eni spinoff 22 Nov 2021 Concise views on global finance: The $50 bln Italian oil group has a new name for the renewable energy and retail arm it plans to partially list.
Reliance-Aramco no-deal is sign of the ESG times 22 Nov 2021 A Saudi plan from 2019 to invest $15 bln into the Indian company’s refining arm is being re-evaluated as Reliance’s green ambitions complicate matters for both sides. The impasse reflects the hectic pace of the energy transition, and the cheap capital available to fund it.
Thyssenkrupp finds lost hydrogen lottery ticket 17 Nov 2021 The ailing 7 bln euro German group’s shares soared amid hopes it might list its electrolysis unit. With a few tweaks, its chlorine-making kit can produce hydrogen, a big enabler of a no-carbon world. That promise means its paltry current sales could yield a 5 bln euro jackpot.
Ariston IPO is enticing play on green energy wave 17 Nov 2021 The family-owned maker of heat pumps and water heaters is going public in Milan at a valuation of up to 4 bln euros. With demand for energy-efficient heating systems set to boom, it’s in a sweet spot. A discount to rivals A.O. Smith and NIBE Industrier should help inflate demand.
Bitcoin miner’s green patina is fool’s gold 17 Nov 2021 In a somewhat novel twist for the power-sucking cryptocurrency business, Iris Energy relies mainly on renewables. That probably helped boost its valuation in a $1.6 bln IPO, but it feels like style over substance. And the climate hype cannot mitigate some serious risk factors.
China’s central bank tries brighter shade of green 16 Nov 2021 A new lending programme could, by one estimate, lead to nearly $1 trln of investment in clean energy projects. It’s a bolder policy than from Western peers, and also a clever way to tackle the stagflation dilemma. Runaway stimulus remains a risk, as does misallocated capital.
Shell’s Dutch exit comes with legal side benefits 15 Nov 2021 Shifting its tax residency to the UK, along with its head office and CEO, simplifies the $170 bln oil major’s structure. It also makes it easier to reorganise for the energy transition. The implied snub to the Dutch court which ordered Shell to cut emissions is an added bonus.
Goldman’s cosy Japan deal is ripe for rival bid 15 Nov 2021 The Wall Street bank and refiner Eneos are forging ahead with a contested plan to take full control of $4 bln roadbuilder Nippo. Even with a richer premium, a leveraged buyout would deliver a healthy return, Breakingviews calculates. It’s a fresh test of Japan Inc’s dozy ways.
Capital Calls: Tesla, Daimler 11 Nov 2021 Concise views on global finance: The electric-car maker’s directors have, like Elon Musk, cashed in; the German company is racing against Agnelli-controlled CNH Industrial to spin off a trucks division.
Rolls-Royce nuclear plans piggyback green success 9 Nov 2021 The UK engineer and partners are pumping 195 mln pounds into a unit to build small commercial reactors. As with wind and solar, the British government is helping by promising to buy the plants’ electricity. It should mean a lucrative side hobby for the group run by Warren East.
Capital Calls: Hedge funds, Rogers, Inmarsat 8 Nov 2021 Concise views on global finance: The industry’s assets are above a new threshold, but it’s a business reaching a limit; the head of the Canadian telecom giant has won a court victory; U.S. rival Viasat pulls the UK-based satellite operator into its orbit for a pricey $7.4 bln.
COP background chatter supports Greta’s bad vibes 8 Nov 2021 The young activist declared the global climate shindig in Glasgow a failure at a weekend protest. In public, financiers and policymakers are bullish about the scope of new private-sector pledges to drive decarbonisation. In private, they fret mightily about energy security.
Forget COP26. The world needs COPPER 26 5 Nov 2021 The climate shindig is all about cutting demand for fossil fuels. The required flipside is a 2020s surge in production of metals for all those extra wind turbines and electric cars. Stay tuned for a separate forum in which governments and miners thrash out how that might happen.
Wind turbine makers are victims of own success 3 Nov 2021 Soaring demand for renewable energy has inflated Vestas and Siemens Gamesa into multibillion-dollar firms. Yet the pair are struggling to turn a profit because of steep rises in raw materials costs. Passing those on will end wind power’s long-term trend of falling prices.
Capital Calls: KKR, Ferrari, HelloFresh 2 Nov 2021 Concise views on global finance: The private equity company is making the most of ideal market conditions; the Italian sports car maker raises its guidance; and a positive sales update turbocharges the German meal-kit delivery firm’s share price.
Capital Calls: Darktrace’s stock wobble 1 Nov 2021 Concise views on global finance: The UK cybersecurity group’s share plunge reflects both short- and longer-term problems.
Shell’s Loeb parry uses cash, capex and chutzpah 28 Oct 2021 The $190 bln oil major needs to deflect activist Third Point’s call to split itself up. High crude prices make it easier to promise fat cash returns and invest more in green energy. Given Shell should have done that anyway, fending off Dan Loeb also requires a certain brass neck.
Road to COP: Sealing the deal 26 Oct 2021 Seasoned climate change lawyer Rick Saines received recognition from the French state for his role in making the 2015 Paris Agreement a landmark success. With days to go until Glasgow’s equivalent COP26, he chatted to George Hay about how this one could pan out.
Breakdown: COP26 gets an ambitions downgrade 25 Oct 2021 An energy crisis and no-show from Xi Jinping are undermining next week’s critical climate gathering in Glasgow. Getting all states to set 2050 net-zero goals is a stretch. Maintaining some momentum via nearer-term pacts in areas like phasing out coal has more chance of success.