Our colleagues at “L’Écho” confirmed it this Monday morning: the electricity and gas supplier Mega is for sale. This would be the second Liège supplier to change ownership after Lampiris, taken over in 2016 by TotalEnergies. For the French company, it was a way to establish itself on the Belgian market by recovering Lampiris’ customer base. Mega could also interest foreign companies wishing to establish themselves on the Belgian energy market, or Belgian companies wishing to expand.
Market shares
In reality, we are told at Mega, the two bosses, Michael Corhay and Thomas Coune, are not selling their shares and if discussions are underway, it is to look for new investors. To develop the activity linked to the supply of energy (gas and electricity) but also its new telecom activity. With always this ambition to be the “low cost” supplier, that is to say the cheapest on the market, while expanding the services.
In a press release, Thomas Coune specifies: « About half of our company is owned by non-active financial shareholders. Mega is always interested in new investors who could help us finance new activities or growth projects, or who would contribute in some other way. At this stage, there is no concrete news on this. It is always possible that the company will welcome new shareholders in the future in this context. But even if this were the case, it would not have a fundamental impact on the company. So there is absolutely nothing to announce, the rumors are unfounded. »
Mega, according to figures compiled by the Walloon regulator, Cwape, has more than 59,000 residential customers for gas in Wallonia in the first quarter of 2024, and 100,000 residential customers for electricity in Wallonia in 2023. This makes it the fifth residential supplier in Wallonia for electricity and gas (with practically the same number of customers as Eneco for the latter). This represents 8% market share for gas and 5% market share for electricity in Wallonia.
Even though Mega is no longer taking on new customers in Brussels, there are still around 5,000 in the capital region. And if you add the customers in Flanders, the total number is around 500,000, according to the company’s spokesperson.
Group purchases
So it’s not insignificant. Mega experienced great turbulence at the time of the energy crisis of 2022, which had caused a significant number of customers to flee. But since then, growth has resumed, Thomas Coune assured last year. And this is thanks to a very aggressive pricing policy and reduced margins. It is striking to note that Mega has won the market for all the group purchases underway in the south of the country.
Whatever happens now, and even if new investors enter the company’s capital, for customers there is no risk of a cut in supply. On the other hand, at the end of current contracts, the conditions could be modified.
Although no sale of the company is on the agenda, this should reassure the approximately 160 Mega employees working in the offices in Liège, Leuven and Rotterdam. Recruitment is still ongoing.
