Toshiba to buy Shaw's stake in Westinghouse Electric for $1.6 billion

Toshiba Corp, Japan's largest nuclear reactor builder, today said that it will buy Shaw Group's 20 per cent stake in nuclear power plant company Westinghouse Electric Co, for about 125 billion yen ($1.6 billion) in cash.

The purchase to be done in the next 90 days will increase Toshiba's stake in Westinghouse from 67 per cent to 87 per cent.

Toshiba said that it will buy the shares through available cash and or loans. 

Tokyo-based Toshiba, Shaw Group and Japan's Ishikawajima-Harima Heavy Industries had acquired a majority stake in Westinghouse in 2006 from British Nuclear Fuels Plc for $5.4 billion. (See: Toshiba buys Westinghouse for $5.4 billion) 

Toshiba paid $4.16 billion for a 77-per cent stake, while Shaw Group paid $1.08 billion for 20 per cent stake, and Ishikawajima paid $16 million for the remaining 3 per cent. In 2007, Toshiba sold 10 per cent of its stake to Kazakhstan's state nuclear company Kazatomprom.

Westinghouse is currently constructing four AP 1000 nuclear reactors in the US and four in China, and has been actively promoting and expanding its business in the US, Asia, Europe and Middle East, since its acquisition by Toshiba.