National Grid To Sell 61% Of Equity In NGGD; Proposes Special Dividend

(RTTNews) - National Grid plc (NG.L, NGG) announced it has entered into an agreement to sell a 61% equity interest in its UK gas distribution business to a consortium of long-term infrastructure investors. National Grid will receive a payment of 3.6 billion pounds in cash from the Consortium. National Grid will also receive 1.8 billion pounds from additional debt financing.

National Grid will own a 39% minority equity interest in a new holding company for gas distribution business, GasD HoldCo. National Grid and the Consortium have also expressed an interest in relation to the potential future sale and purchase of an additional 14% of equity in GasD HoldCo on broadly equivalent financial terms to the announced transaction.

Following completion of the transaction, National Grid intends to return 4 billion pounds of net proceeds to shareholders through the combination of a special dividend and share buy-backs. The Group said, at least 75% of the net proceeds are expected to be returned via a special dividend in second quarter of calendar year 2017.