“A decree indicates that, temporarily, you do not have the right to know about files relating to the Engie company”, launched Delphine Batho, ecologist deputy, at the National Assembly. A sentence that did not please Agnès Pannier-Runacher who appeared very moved: “I am in a situation of divorce from my husband, who works at Engie”. In the midst of the separation procedure, the Minister for Energy Transition cannot manage files related to the Engie group, due to a risk of conflict of interest.
But she can be reassured, this measure should only last two weeks when the divorce agreement with Marc Pannier, her (soon) ex-husband, will be fully validated, her office told AFP. The latter is president of Engie Global Markets, the group’s energy trading platform. He is also a member of the executive committee of the “Global Energy Management & Sales” unit. »
Elisabeth Borne in charge of files
This is not the first time that Agnès Pannier-Runacher has been subject to restrictions on Engie-related files. At the beginning of 2019, she had been cut off from the debates as Secretary of State to the Minister of the Economy and then as Minister Delegate for Industry. She was already in a relationship with Marc Pannier.
The Prime Minister is tasked with taking over the files related to Engie: “Very concretely, this means that in the next 15 days, if an urgent decision must be taken vis-à-vis Engie, it will be taken by the Prime Minister. Minister,” said the office of the Minister for Energy Transition. “It is a technical legal deadline that cannot be compressed”, he added, specifying that there was “no difficulty in the operation of the cabinet but only a precaution on the case of Engie”.