the candidates of the international funds appear – Corriere.it

The deadline for presenting a possible alternative list of names to the (majority) one of the government and (minority) of Assogestioni for the next board of directors of Enel expires at 11.59 pm today. For days there have been rumors that a group of international funds would like to present a list of candidates aiming to obtain a majority at the assembly on May 10th. A hypothesis, this, which is not excluded by government circles, where however it is remembered that since it is a strategic company for national security, Palazzo Chigi has the powers of golden power over Enel.

The totonomi

The only certainties for now are the names deposited by the Treasury and Assogestioni. To which have been added in the last few hours those presented by the consortium led by Zach Mecelis, founder of Covalis Capital, a long-term shareholder of Enel with a stake of approximately 1% of the capital. The ministry — in view of Enel’s shareholders’ meeting convened on May 10 — proposes Paolo Scaroni as president, Flavio Cattaneo as managing director and Alessandro Zehenter, Johanna Arbib Perugia, Fiammetta Salmoni and Olga Cuccurullo as advisers. The minority list of Assogestioni indicated Dario Frigerio, Alessandra Stabilini and Mario Corsi. Enel’s shareholding includes the Ministry of Economy and Finance with 23.6%, institutional investors with 59.4% and individual investors with 17%. . To submit the list, at least 0.5% of Enel’s capital is needed which, based on data updated as of Friday, is equivalent to at least 290.16 million euros of investment. If a third list were to appear, it is probable that the Mecelis consortium will try, through a proxy fight in the meeting, to convince other funds and win the majority of the Enel board.

The alternative list

Tranquility seeps into the Treasury and Palazzo Chigi on this issue. The presentation of a legitimate alternative list and the move do not cause concern because it would be part of normal corporate dynamics. Those who follow the dossier believe it is premature to talk about golden power, also because first we need to see what will happen in the meeting. But, it is underlined, recourse to special powers is one of the government’s tools which could, for example, block extraordinary decisions such as the sale of assets that it deems strategic for the company and for the country. Already at the May 2020 meeting, some Enel shareholders – asset managers and institutional investors – had presented a list of names, but in the end the proposal from the Italian government had prevailed. Enel called, among other things, to intervene on its 60 billion euro debt at the end of 2022. A ballast that according to the 2025 business plan should also be reduced with the sale of non-core assets valued at around 21 billion euro.