Gunvor to acquire BP's 75% stake in Spanish gas power plant

BRUSSELS (Reuters) - Energy trader Gunvor has agreed to acquire a 75% stake in 785 megawatt (MW) power plant in Bilbao, Spain, from BP gas marketing, a joint statement said on Monday.

The facility will be the Geneva trader's first power plant acquisition. The deal is expected to complete in the first quarter of 2024.

Gunvor has a team about 10 people covering EU power trading in Geneva, Madrid and London. The company has been building up the team since 2019.

"This decision reflects BP's strategy of transforming from an International Oil Company (IOC) into an Integrated Energy Company (IEC) that aims to become net zero by 2050 or sooner," Andrés Guevara, head of BP in Spain, said in the statement.

"We remain committed to this transformation in Spain ... as we reorient our investments towards transition growth engines such as EV charging, bio energy, renewable power and hydrogen.”

The plant runs on natural gas. The remaining 25% will remain owned by the energy agency of the Basque regional government.

Gunvor already has two biofuel plants located in Huelva and Álava and is trying to build up its presence in renewable energies through an investment arm called Nyera.

Gunvor is one of the top five independent oil traders and a top liquefied natural gas trader.

(Reporting by Julia Payne, Editing by Louise Heavens)