ENGIE SA (ENXTPA:ENGI) is carving out and selling newly created Equans to raise funds as it pivots towards investing more in renewables. The auction attracted seven initial bids but the field has narrowed to three that will submit final offers on November 2, 2021: Bain Capital, LP, Bouygues SA (ENXTPA:EN) and Eiffage SA (ENXTPA:FGR). So has the presence of Bouygues among the bidders — the group owned by the billionaire Bouygues family has many dealings with the state via its roads and infrastructure businesses, and chair Martin Bouygues is a longtime ally of President Emmanuel Macron.

The state owns a stake of roughly 24 per cent in Engie and will be able to weigh in on the sale in the boardroom, where it holds three of 14 seats. Some suitors have privately voiced fears that the board will favour the bid from Bouygues, and lobbied for a more structured set-up for the binding offers. They are now set to be unsealed at the same time to avoid any leaks or last-minute adjustments.

“We will be extremely vigilant about the transparency and fairness of the auction process,” Matthias Boyer-Chammard, a managing director at Bain, told Les Echos newspaper. Some have also recounted discouraging signals in meetings with public officials who expressed a preference for French bidders, according to people familiar with the matter. Bouygues, Eiffage and Bain declined to comment.

France's economy ministry and Engie did not return requests for comment. Engie had sought to stamp out any doubts about the auction by tightening the process around November 02, 2021's bids, people close to the matter said.