Brookfield Renewable Partners and Cameco Corp. are teaming up to buy Westinghouse Electric Company for US$4.5 billion, plus debt, from another unit of Brookfield and its institutional partners.

Under the terms of the deal, Toronto-based Brookfield will pay US$2.3 billion and Saskatoon-based Cameco will contribute the remaining US$2.2 billion for Westinghouse, one of the world’s largest providers of nuclear services. Brookfield will own 51 per cent of the business, with Cameco owning the remaining 49 per cent.

Including assumed debt, the transaction comes in at an enterprise value of US$7.875 billion.

The current dominant shareholder of Westinghouse is another arm of Brookfield –  Brookfield Business Partners – which partnered with institutional partners to buy the business back in 2018 for US$4.6 billion. Brookfield Business Partners expects to book US$4.5 billion in total profit from its four years of owning Westinghouse.  

Westinghouse employs about 9,000 people, and services approximately half of the nuclear power generation sector. The bulk of its revenue comes from recurring-revenue contracts, with about 85 per cent of its clients being signed in for the long term.

In a release, Cameco chief executive officer Tim Gitzel said the deal allows Cameco – one of the world’s largest suppliers of uranium – to capitalize on the full nuclear supply chain, rather than being a source of the base fuel.

“With our more than 30-year proven track record of providing secure and reliable fuel supplies to a global customer base, this transaction fits perfectly within Cameco’s strategy and is expected to increase our ability to meet the growing needs of existing and new customers at a time when origin and security of supply is of significant concern,”

“At the same time, we expect the recurring demand for Westinghouse’s operating plant services and nuclear fuel will generate a strong revenue stream and add stable cash flow to complement Cameco’s existing uranium and fuel services business.”

Cameco said it currently has enough liquidity to finance its part of the deal, though it will be pursuing additional flexibility in the form of cash, debt and equity in order to keep its balance sheet in order prior to closing.

Concurrently, Cameco announced plans for a bought deal to sell US$650 million worth of shares, priced at $21.95 apiece.

The transaction is expected to close in the back half of 2023.

Nuclear power has been gaining greater interest over the course of the year, as natural gas disruptions stemming from the Russian invasion of Ukraine and explosions disrupting Moscow’s Nord Stream Pipeline threaten European energy security raise concerns of power outages.

The nuclear industry has by and large been in flux since Japan essentially idled its nuclear power program in the wake of the 2011 Fukushima disaster, creating concerns over demand for uranium.

Back here at home, Ontario announced plans to keep the Pickering nuclear power generation plant active for an additional year in late September, outlining plans to keep the unit in operation until 2026.

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Source

https://www.bnnbloomberg.ca/brookfield-renewable-cameco-partner-to-buy-westinghouse-for-us-4-5b-1.1831134