Reports: Centrica To Buy Stake In British Energy

LONDON (AP) — British energy firm Centrica PLC is on the brink of a deal to buy a 25 percent stake in nuclear power operator British Energy for 3.1 billion pounds ($4.7 billion), newspapers reported Sunday.

The Sunday Times and Sunday Telegraph said French power provider Electricite de France SA had agreed to sell the stake to Centrica, which owns British Gas.

In January, EdF completed a 12.5 billion pound takeover of British Energy, which runs eight U.K.-based nuclear power stations.

The Sunday Times said the companies hoped to announce the deal at Centrica's annual meeting in London on Monday. Centrica spokesman Andrew Turpin declined to comment on the reports.

Centrica and EdF agreed the deal in principle last summer, but talks have bogged down amid falling electricity prices.