Portugal Mulls Bigger Galp Stake After Moeve Deal Collapse

Portugal's government is assessing whether to increase its 8% stake in oil company Galp Energia after the collapse of merger talks with Spain's Moeve, the economy minister said on Sunday as it seeks to safeguard strategic assets including the country's only oil refinery.

The two companies called off a merger of their downstream assets last week as the US-Iran war turned refineries from struggling businesses into prized assets, making long-term merger valuations difficult.

Minister Manuel Castro Almeida told public radio Antena 1 and business newspaper Negocios that the merger's collapse was "a decision taken by both companies", stressing that the "government fully respects private enterprise and private property".

He added, however, that the government had "fulfilled its duty" by ensuring any ownership change at the Sines refinery, Portugal's sole refinery and a strategic asset, "posed no risk to energy security."

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