STUTTGART, Germany (Reuters) – The constitutional court of the German state of Baden-Wuerttemberg ruled on Thursday that the state government’s purchase of EDF’S (EDF.PA: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) 45 percent stake in utility EnBW (EBKG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) was unlawful.

The court said that Stefan Mappus, the state’s conservative premier at the time, should have consulted the state parliament in Stuttgart before agreeing to the 4.7 billion euro ($6.26 billion) deal in December 2010.

FRANKFURT, Sept 30 (Reuters) – German publisher
Axel Springer AG (SPRGn.DE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) has made an offer for parts of WAZ
media group, one of the country’s largest publishing houses,
setting up a bid battle with a WAZ shareholder.

A spokeswoman for Axel Springer on Friday confirmed a media
report, saying the Berlin-based publisher made an offer and that
due diligence was still pending, declining to say how much money
Springer had offered.

FRANKFURT, July 20 (Reuters) – Germany’s nuclear phase-out
has prompted the country’s largest utilities to look to energy
heavyweight Russia for investments and for natural gas for
low-carbon power production.

RWE , Germany’s largest power producer, last week
revealed it had begun exclusive talks with Russian gas monopoly
Gazprom , the world’s largest gas producer, about gas
and power joint-ventures.

FRANKFURT, July 14 (Reuters) – German utility RWE
agreed to sell its high-voltage power grid and teamed up with
Gazprom for power projects, trying to overcome severe
hits to its profit from the economic crisis and a German tax.

RWE, Europe’s fifth-largest utility, secured exclusive talks
with Russian gas monopoly Gazprom that could lead to a
gas and coal power joint venture in Germany, Britain and the
Benelux countries.

FRANKFURT, July 14 (Reuters) – Germany’s RWE ,
Europe’s fifth-largest utility, agreed to sell its German
long-distance power grid in a 1 billion euro ($1.4 billion)
deal, a person close to the buying consortium said on Thursday.

“There is an agreement on the deal,” the source, who
declined to be identified, told Reuters on Thursday.

DUESSELDORF/FRANKFURT, July 13 (Reuters) – Germany’s RWE
, Europe’s fifth-largest utility, might be able to
clinch a 1 billion euro ($1.4 billion) deal to sell its German
long-distance power grid this week, two people familiar with the
matter told Reuters.

“We are close to the end,” said a third person, who is close
to the potential buyers, on Wednesday.

FRANKFURT/DUESSELDORF (Reuters) – Germany’s cartel office said on Monday it would “closely” examine any investment by Gazprom (GAZP.MM: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) in RWE (RWEG.DE: Quote, Profile, Research, Stock Buzz) after reports the weakened German utility was open to an investment by the Russian gas monopoly.

Essen-based RWE has been hit by loss-making gas contracts and weak power prices, and is also under threat from a German tax on nuclear fuel that came into effect this year.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Germany is set to turn back to coal, gas and imports to fill the energy chasm left by its fast-track exit of nuclear power, refusing to boost green power and threatening its efforts to lower emissions.

The government permanently shut eight nuclear power plants immediately after the Fukushima crisis in Japan, and is closing the remaining nine in stages up to 2022.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Germany is set to turn back to coal, gas and imports to fill the energy chasm left by its fast-track exit of nuclear power, refusing to boost green power and threatening its efforts to lower emissions.

The government permanently shut eight nuclear power plants immediately after the Fukushima crisis in Japan, and is closing the remaining nine in stages up to 2022.

FRANKFURT (Reuters) – Competition in the German power market will be hampered for at least another two years until new power stations partially replace eight plants shut down by the government, the country’s network regulator said.

The government decided on Monday to phase out nuclear power in Germany, Europe’s largest power market, by 2022 due to public opposition after the disaster at Japan’s Fukushima power station.