Suez S.A., known from 1997 to 2001 as Suez-Lyonnaise des eaux, was a leading
French multinational corporation
A multinational corporation (MNC; also called a multinational enterprise (MNE), transnational enterprise (TNE), transnational corporation (TNC), international corporation, or stateless corporation, is a corporate organization that owns and cont ...
headquartered in the
8th arrondissement of Paris
The 8th arrondissement of Paris (''VIIIe arrondissement'') is one of the 20 Arrondissements of Paris, arrondissements of the capital city of France. In spoken French, the arrondissement is colloquially referred to as ''le huitième'' ().
The ar ...
, with operations primarily in
water
Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...
,
electricity
Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter possessing an electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described by Maxwel ...
and
natural gas
Natural gas (also fossil gas, methane gas, and gas) is a naturally occurring compound of gaseous hydrocarbons, primarily methane (95%), small amounts of higher alkanes, and traces of carbon dioxide and nitrogen, hydrogen sulfide and helium ...
supply, and
waste management
Waste management or waste disposal includes the processes and actions required to manage waste from its inception to its final disposal. This includes the collection, transport, treatment, and disposal of waste, together with monitor ...
. Suez was the result of a 1997 merger between the ''
Compagnie de Suez'' and , a leading French water company. In the early 2000s Suez also owned some
media
Media may refer to:
Communication
* Means of communication, tools and channels used to deliver information or data
** Advertising media, various media, content, buying and placement for advertising
** Interactive media, media that is inter ...
and
telecommunication
Telecommunication, often used in its plural form or abbreviated as telecom, is the transmission of information over a distance using electronic means, typically through cables, radio waves, or other communication technologies. These means of ...
s assets, but later
divested
In finance and economics, divestment or divestiture is the reduction of some kind of asset for financial, ethical, or political objectives or sale of an existing business by a firm. A divestment is the opposite of an investment. Divestiture is a ...
them. According to the ''Masons Water Yearbook'' 2004/5, Suez served 117.4 million people around the world. The company conducted a merger of equals with fellow
utility
In economics, utility is a measure of a certain person's satisfaction from a certain state of the world. Over time, the term has been used with at least two meanings.
* In a normative context, utility refers to a goal or objective that we wish ...
company
Gaz de France on 22 July 2008 to form
GDF Suez
Engie SA (stylised in all caps as ENGIE) is a French multinational electric utility company, headquartered in La Défense, Courbevoie. Its activities cover electricity generation and distribution, natural gas, nuclear power, renewable energy ...
(called
Engie
Engie SA (stylised in all caps as ENGIE) is a French multinational electric utility company, headquartered in La Défense, Courbevoie. Its activities cover electricity generation and distribution, natural gas, nuclear power, renewable energy ...
since 2015). The water and waste assets of Suez were
spun off into a separate publicly traded company,
Suez Environnement.
History
Suez was (and remains, through GDF Suez) one of the oldest continuously existing multinational corporations in the world, with one line of corporate history dating back to the 1822 founding of the (literally: General Dutch Company for the favouring of industry) by King
William I of the Netherlands
William I (Willem Frederik; 24 August 1772 – 12 December 1843) was King of the Netherlands and List of monarchs of Luxembourg, Grand Duke of Luxembourg from 1815 until his abdication in 1840.
Born as the son of William V, Prince of Orange, ...
(see
Société Générale de Belgique). Its form prior to the GDF merger was the result of nearly two centuries of reorganisation and corporate mergers. Its most recent name comes from the involvement of one of its several founding entities – the ''
Compagnie universelle du canal maritime de Suez'' – in building the
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal (; , ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, Indo-Mediterranean, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia (and by extension, the Sinai Peninsula from the rest ...
in the mid-19th century.
Merger with Gaz de France
On February 25, 2006, French Prime minister
Dominique de Villepin
Dominique Marie François René Galouzeau de Villepin (; born 14 November 1953) is a French politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 31 May 2005 to 17 May 2007 under President Jacques Chirac.
In his career working at the Ministry ...
announced the merger of Suez and
Gaz de France, which would make the world's largest
liquefied natural gas
Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is natural gas (predominantly methane, CH4, with some mixture of ethane, C2H6) that has been cooled to liquid form for ease and safety of non-pressurized storage or transport. It takes up about 1/600th the volume o ...
company. The
revenue
In accounting, revenue is the total amount of income generated by the sale of product (business), goods and services related to the primary operations of a business.
Commercial revenue may also be referred to as sales or as turnover. Some compan ...
of GDF was around 22.4 billion euros in 2005, compared to 41.5 billion for Suez. The
CGT trade-union called the merger a "disguised privatization."
On 3 September 2007, Gaz de France and Suez announced agreed terms of merger. The deal was conducted on the basis of an exchange of 21 Gaz de France shares for 22 Suez shares via the absorption of Suez by Gaz de France. The French state holds more than 35% of shares of the merged company, GDF Suez.
As a consequence of the conditions posed by the
European Commission
The European Commission (EC) is the primary Executive (government), executive arm of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with a number of European Commissioner, members of the Commission (directorial system, informall ...
with regards to allowing the merger, on 29 May 2008 Suez sold its Belgian gas supplier
Distrigas to the Italian company
Eni
Eni is an Italian oil and gas corporation.
Eni or ENI may refer to:
Businesses and organisations
* Escuela Nacional de Inteligencia, the Argentine intelligence academy
* Groupe des écoles nationales d’ingénieurs (Groupe ENI), a French engi ...
for €2.7 billion.
[ ] On 22 July 2008 the group
GDF Suez
Engie SA (stylised in all caps as ENGIE) is a French multinational electric utility company, headquartered in La Défense, Courbevoie. Its activities cover electricity generation and distribution, natural gas, nuclear power, renewable energy ...
, a company of €74 billion of annual turnover, was officially created.
Major subsidiaries
Now part of Engie
* Suez Energy International – energy
*
Electrabel – electricity in Europe (first in Belgium)
* Tractebel Engineering – international engineering consultancy
* – building services/facilities management
Now part of SUEZ
*
Sita
Sita (; ), also known as Siya, Jānaki and Maithili, is a Hindu goddess and the female protagonist of the Hindu epic ''Ramayana''. Sita is the consort of Rama, the avatar of god Vishnu, and is regarded as an avatar of goddess Lakshmi. She is t ...
— waste management
*
Suez Environnement — water and waste
*
Degrémont — water and wastewater treatment engineering
*
United Water — water in the United States, also
Adelaide
Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...
, Australia
*
Grupo Agbar — water and waste
* Purite Ltd - water purification company
* GE Water and Process Technologies-Ionics-Ecolochem-ZENON-Osmonics
* Driplex Water Engineering Pvt. Ltd.
* Driplex Water Engineering International Pvt. Ltd
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Suez (Company)
Engie
Energy companies established in 1858
Energy companies disestablished in 2008
Defunct oil and gas companies of France
Defunct electric power companies of France
Waste management companies of France
Company, S.A., Suez (company)
Water companies of France
1858 establishments in France
Privatized companies of France
2008 mergers and acquisitions