Everybody has their eyes on the Belgian company Distrigas, which will soon become ripe for the picking as Suez will be forced to sell its majority stake as part of its merger requirements with the EC. Among the potential suitors (which is practically everyone) is the monstrous EDF, whose chairman Pierre Gadonneix openly stated his interest in the company at the Rome conference, along with plans to invest outside of Europe for the first time in the United States and Russia. Panic quickly insued, and trading of Distrigas shares was suspended on the Euronext Brussels (it’s illegal under Belgian law to make such statements). There are major concerns over who will be the next owner. Suez will hold a “transparent” auction to swap assets for the stake – no cash accepted. The Belgians are terrified that the French state, through EDF, will end up controlling their energy sector, but there are also other outcomes to watch, such as Spain’s Gas Natural (which is keen) and Italy’s Enel (which is feigning disinterest). While Europe’s energy titans squabble, I of course am keeping an eye on the quiet contender, Gazprom. In many ways, Distrigas would be an ideally positioned energy asset to own, and I imagine the executives at the Korporatsiya are salivating over it.