The Naturgy shareholders meeting scheduled for March 28 will renew the board’s leadership for another four years, confirming Francisco Reynés (born 1963 in Palma de Mallorca) as president and chief executive officer. Reynés stands out as the first executive from Ibex 35 to accumulate the two roles at once, consolidating significant influence within the company. The five largest shareholders, who control about 86% of the equity, approved the renewal of their voting powers. At the helm, a 10-member management committee continues to operate, all of them men, guiding the group through its strategic agenda.
Reynés assumed the presidency of Naturgy on February 6, 2018. CaixaBank Foundation remains its main shareholder, holding roughly 26.7% of Naturgy’s capital, with Isidro Faine at the helm of the foundation. Since his arrival, Naturgy’s stock has shown substantial growth, rising more than fifty percent and contributing to a market capitalization around 26.1 billion euros. In 2022, the company’s value reached approximately 33.97 billion euros, with profits near 1.83 billion euros, reflecting evolving performance under the current leadership.
The current president arrived from Abertis, where he served as vice president and chief executive officer, and where he also oversaw major corporate moves tied to telecom infrastructure and the public offering in 2015. Abertis now operates with a widely held ownership structure, with significant portions controlled by international investment interests. The affiliations and historical maneuvers surrounding these holdings have shaped Naturgy’s strategic posture in the European energy landscape.
Under Reynés, Naturgy has pursued an industrial restructuring and a realignment of its shareholding. The company’s consolidation followed the integration of Unity Fenosa, a step that redefined Naturgy’s identity and sharpened its focus on core energy businesses. The transformation was accelerated by the pandemic, followed by disruptions linked to geopolitical events, including the war in Ukraine. A high-profile project, Gemini, was designed to separate regulated, high-dividend activities from growth-oriented, liberalized segments. However, the timing and execution of Gemini faced delays amid shifting geopolitical and policy contexts, and public commentary from high-ranking officials, including the vice president of the government and the minister of ecological transition, added to the complexity of the strategic debate.
The decision to reorganize Naturgy’s structure was seen by observers as a means to simplify the shareholder base and secure a clearer path for future growth. The approach included strategic changes to the capital structure and discussions around potential fundraising moves. In recent years, the company experienced a notable reshaping of its investor base, with four other funds and strategic partners joining the shareholder mix. CaixaBank’s increased stake buttressed a stabilized ownership position, though the company signaled a preference not to expand beyond its current level in the near term. The market watched closely as other large investors evaluated opportunities, including a bid scenario that would have altered control dynamics in the capital, though such moves did not materialize at that time.
IFM Investors had aimed for a 22% stake but reached about 14%, signaling ongoing interest while also facing market realities. The shift in shareholding prompted a smaller free float and a noticeable dip in trading volume, which affected Naturgy’s relative position among Ibex constituents. Nevertheless, the company’s governance and market standing remained resilient, with no immediate concerns raised about its continued inclusion in the Ibex index, provided no single investor intensified a broad market purchase. The path forward hinged on rekindling Gemini and stabilizing shareholder structure, with Reynés driving the organization through a period marked by vigilance and cautious optimism.
In reflection, Naturgy’s leadership, under Reynés, has navigated a landscape shaped by regulatory expectations, macroeconomic volatility, and geopolitical risk. The immediate future was framed by a tense balance sheet, strategic liquidity considerations, and a commitment to maintaining a stable but opportunistic growth trajectory. While the exact timing and nature of any further organizational moves remained under discussion, Naturgy continued to align its operations with the broader goals of resilience, efficiency, and shareholder value creation, all while preserving the company’s core energy mandate and commitment to sustainable practices.