The last two weeks have seen two Big Oil firms move into energy storage as continuing low prices for crude force petroleum sector players to diversify.
On Monday 9 May French oil giant Total announced a friendly takeover of Saft Groupe, which specialises in batteries for the transport, industry and defence sectors.
The €950m purchase represents a 38.3% premium on Saft’s share price on the close of business the Friday before the announcement. It is also 41.9% above Saft’s weighted average share price over the previous six months, Total said.