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The credit rating for the newly rebranded Engie is facing a negative outlook due to concerns over its operational performance as well as weak power and commodity prices, according to Moody’s.
Although the rating agency has maintained the energy giant’s A2 rating it said it has downgraded the outlook from stable to negative due to the risk that credit metrics stay below threshold levels beyond 2015.
In April this year the French company formerly known as GDF Suez said it would rebrand as Engie as part of its strategy to manage the “profound” change in the energy sector.
The new name ‘Engie’ will better reflect the company’s interests in low carbon energy than its current name which is derived from the French ‘gaz de France’, the company said at the time.
Analysts at Citigroup said following news of the credit outlook downgrade that it would expect action to be taken on capex if overall conditions don’t change.
“Engie management has historically been committed to an A rating, we would therefore expect some further action in costs or capex if the operational cash flow through the project pipeline doesn’t improve and overall conditions don’t change,” the analysts said in an investor note on Friday morning.
“In the sector, Engie has the lowest cost of debt and we wouldn’t expect that to change, in the medium term at least,” the note said.
The company operates in 70 countries, including the UK where it holds a significant stake in the business energy supply market.
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