French multinational Engie has signed a £330m deal to buy the regeneration business of Keepmoat from TDR and Sun Capital.

Keepmoat regeneration specialises in the design, refurbishment and upgrade of buildings and places, including zero carbon new homes, retrofitting high-rise accomodation and on-site generation in community regeneration projects. Engie said the deal would support the company’s “focus in the UK on energy and facilities management”, by expanding its service offering and energy efficiency capabilities.

Wilfrid Petrie, chief executive of Engie in the UK and Ireland, said: “Engie aims to be the number one partner for cities and places in the UK and with the Keepmoat regeneration business we are extending and deepening our relationships with local authorities right across the country. By combining our energy expertise with an expanded services capability we can make a bigger impact, as we help to improve the lives of the communities we serve. Today, buildings account for 30% of UK carbon emissions and our investment in Keepmoat underlines our long-term commitment to the UK as it transitions to a lower carbon economy. This transaction will also support our growth ambitions for decentralised energy networks and our home energy business as the regeneration activities will bring us closer to the end customer.”

The Keepmoat regeneration business has an annual turnover of approximately £800 million and employs 2,500 staff across the UK. Dave Sheridan, Keepmoat’s chief executive, will join Engie at completion together with the regeneration division’s infrastructure and employees.

Engie, which said in November it would enter the UK domestic market as a supplier, made the announcement alongside its 2016 results. It said improved performance by its energy services division in the UK had helped drive a significant increase in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) in its European business, together with increased energy sales in Italy,  the restart of the Doel 3, Tihange 2 and Doel 1 nuclear power plants in Benelux and increases in gas sales and electricity volumes in France. Strong performance in the European business was partially offset by continued “negative price effects” and  unfavorable exchange rates, the company said, which meant group EBITDA was down by 5.2% on a reported basis and 2.7% at €10.7bn.