Centrica expands footprint in New York

12th Jul 2012 07:23

Energy provider Centrica has agreed to acquire the New York-based energy retailers Energetix and NYSEG Solutions, which operate as a single retail organisation, in order to strengthen its position in north-east America. The acquisition, made through Centrica's North American subsidiary Direct Energy, will cost the company $110m (£71m) in cash, plus additional working capital, and is expected to deliver economies of scale and significant cost savings through integration of the businesses with Direct Energy's existing operations.The two companies were acquired from Spanish electric company Iberdrola, which said that the disposals are in line with its "strategy of divesting non-core businesses."Direct Energy President and Chief Executive Officer Chris Weston said: "This acquisition marks another step in the development of our North American business and supports Direct Energy's strategy to grow and add scale to its US Northeast downstream power and gas position, particularly in the New York market."As a result of the acquisition the company will have nearly 500,000 customers in the state of New York. NR