The French government has asked state-owned utility EDF to be transparent about its overseas operations to ensure that none were set up to avoid taxes, the finance ministry said on Sunday. In a letter addressed to the new head of EDF, Jean-Bernard Levy, Finance Minister Michel Sapin and Budget Minister Emmanuel Macron said they had asked the EDF board to supply such information at its next meeting.
"While there may be technical, legal or commercial reasons for a company to have offices abroad, we cannot accept that such establishments are mainly guided by tax reasons," said the letter, dated February 6 and seen by Reuters.
The letter followed a report by France 2 television indicating that EDF was operating in what it characterised as "tax havens".
Sapin then told parliament he would demand explanations from Levy, who took on the top role at EDF in November after serving as the CEO of Thales.
EDF declined comment about the letter, but a spokeswoman said the operations cited in the television report were involved in insurance for industrial activities. The French state owns 84.5 percent of the utility.