Gaz de France Breaks Loose

French government has changed the corporate status of France?s state natural gas company Gaz de France (GDF) from a state-owned company into a limited liability company in its move toward privatization, the Finance Ministry said.

The government will primarily continue to hold 70 percent of the company?s stock and voting rights, but the government is preparing to sell GDF stakes to private investors.

Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin said that he hopes to see GDF opened up to new shareholders before the end of 2005.
GDF head Jean-Francois Cirelli called the corporate legal change "a major step." Under its new statute, GDF is freed from the "specialty principle," which restricted its business to natural gas.

Now, Gaz de France can market other energy commodities and associated services in France and abroad.