Compañía Sevillana de Electricidad facts for kids

The Compañía Sevillana de Electricidad, S. A. (often called CSE or Sevillana) was a big Spanish company. It was started in Seville in 1894. This company made and supplied electricity. Over the 20th century, it grew by taking over other companies. It became almost the only electricity provider in Andalusia, a region in Spain. In 1996, it began to join with a larger company called Endesa. It was then known as Sevillana-Endesa. The full merger finished in 2002.

History of Sevillana de Electricidad

How the Company Started

Spain began to set rules for making electricity in the late 1800s. On July 23, 1894, the Compañía Sevillana de Electricidad, Sociedad Anónima was created. Money for the company came from a new German company, Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaft (AEG), and from Deutsche Bank.

At first, Sevillana only worked in the Seville province. By 1914, it was the only electricity maker there. It could produce 15 GW of power.

Growing Bigger

After becoming strong in Seville, CSE started to grow into nearby areas. It began in the Campo de Gibraltar in the province of Cádiz. In 1926, CSE bought the Empresa Rondeña de Electricidad. This made CSE the main electricity producer in the province of Málaga. It also gained hydroelectric power plants on the Guadalhorce River. By 1936, Sevillana was the top electricity company in Andalusia. It had a power capacity of 130 GW.

After the Spanish Civil War, the company stayed in Spanish hands. About ten years later, it grew very quickly. In 1951, it joined with a company called Mengemor. In 1964, CSE took over the Sociedad Hidroeléctrica de Peñarroya. Then, in 1967, it absorbed Hidroeléctrica del Chorro. This was its main rival in Andalusia. Hidroeléctrica del Chorro owned important hydroelectric plants at El Chorro.

The company's growth ended in 1968. It bought the Centrales Térmicas del Litoral. These were thermal power stations built by the government. This gave CSE control over electricity production in Andalusia. It also gained control in the Extremaduran province of Badajoz.

Nuclear Power and Endesa

In 1973, the world faced an oil crisis. This made fuel oil expensive. So, CSE started to work with nuclear power. It joined other companies to build the Almaraz Nuclear Power Plant in 1973. It also started the Valdecaballeros Nuclear Power Plant in 1975. The Almaraz plant began making power in 1981. The Valdecaballeros plant was never finished.

CSE became a very important company. Its shares were traded on the IBEX 35, a major Spanish stock market index.

Spain's electricity market became more open to competition. This was part of joining the European Union. In 1991, Endesa bought 33.5 percent of CSE's shares. By 1996, Grupo Endesa owned 75 percent of CSE. This gave Endesa full control.

In 1999, CSE's shares stopped being traded on the stock market. On February 15, 2002, the company officially stopped existing as a separate business. It became fully part of Grupo Endesa. Endesa is Spain's biggest electricity producer. The company was then known as Sevillana-Endesa.

See also

In Spanish: Compañía Sevillana de Electricidad para niños