Naturgy has taken another step in its efficiency plan. The company chaired by Francisco Reynés has just disposed of the majority of its participation in the partnerships it formed with IBM and Everis for the management of the company’s technological services in the largest outsourcing contract in the country.
According to sources consulted by elEconomista, the company has taken a second step in its strategy and has ceded control of these companies that were created in mid-2019.
With this move, IBM and Everis will reach 85% of the capital of Lean companies (Lean Corporate Services, Lean Customer Services, Lean Grid Services and Naturgy IT) and Naturgy will maintain a testimonial 15% of the capital.
In this way, IBM and Everis will take over the management of these technology services companies once the process is finished in February 2021.
The gas company signed a contract valued at more than 2,000 million euros for the management of its technology during the next 10 years and that can reach up to 5,000 million depending on the services that its technological partners finally provide.
At the time, the company identified up to twenty areas that could be outsourced. These included multi-channel customer service management, which includes meter reading, management of defaults, and maintenance of infrastructure and communications.
Until now, the participation was 25% for IBM and Everis and 75% for Naturgy. Within the scenarios envisaged in the agreement signed in 2019, the possibility of increasing the shareholding of the partners was already considered, an extreme that is now materializing, in line with the company’s new strategy that involves the rotation of assets and the search for efficiencies.
Naturgy contemplated in its strategic plan to reduce operating expenses by an amount of 500 million euros until 2022, in order to go from the current 2,500 million euros to 2,000 million in four years. The operation also means that around 600 people who worked at Naturgy now become part of the corresponding workforce of IBM and Everis, although they will maintain working conditions equivalent to those they previously had, as agreed by the company.
With this movement, Naturgy strengthens itself in the current context and impact of the evolution of the energy sector (decarbonisation, energy transition, greater competition …) in Europe and Spain, and achieves a greater contribution of value and innovation to operational functions. of the group.
The company plans to present its strategic plan this February in which the president himself assures that “there will be no sacred cows” and that he will seek the growth of society and maintain shareholder compensation.
