According to the Finans media report, the four parties said that the government should first draft an exit plan and then sell its Orsted shares later at an opportune time.
(March 3): Orsted A/S is again becoming a hot political topic in Denmark, with several parties calling on the government to sell its stake in the wind energy company after the upcoming election, according to local media.
Four parties on Denmark’s political right want an exit plan for the state’s 50.1% ownership stake after the March 24 parliament vote, Finans reported on Tuesday. A fifth party, the Liberals which is part of the government coalition, said it won’t oppose the idea. Between them, the five parties control about 40% of the current seats in parliament.
Denmark’s government has just taken part in a rescue package for Orsted, contributing half of October’s 60-billion krone (US$9.4 billion) rights issue that the company needed to tackle the downturn in the wind-power industry. The Liberals also campaigned on a sale of Orsted in the 2022 national elections, though dropped the plan after forming a coalition government with the Social Democrats, who oppose a sale.
“If the power shifts from the current middle-government, towards a right-wing government, Orsted’s days as a publicly owned entity could be counted,” Jakob Magnussen, head of credit research at Danske Bank A/S, said in a note in response to the media report. Still, current opinion polls suggest it’s more likely Denmark will get “a left-wing government which has not expressed willingness to sell Orsted,” the analyst said.
The five right-wing parties stand to win 74 of parliament’s 179 seats in the upcoming vote, falling short of a majority, according to the latest poll by public broadcaster DR.
According to the Finans media report, the four parties said that the government should first draft an exit plan and then sell its Orsted shares later at an opportune time. The media quoted representatives from the Conservatives, Liberal Alliance, the Danish People’s Party and the Denmark Democrats. Denmark should first carve out those of Orsted’s assets that are critical to the country’s energy infrastructure and keep those before a sale, Finans quoted representatives from two of the parties as saying.
The state’s role in Orsted has a long history of controversy. In 2014, the finance ministry sold a stake to Goldman Sachs Group Inc, which sparked large protests and caused the government coalition to splinter as the Socialist People’s Party walked out in protest.