Significant business acquisitions

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2013

Significant business acquisitions

Note 3. Significant business acquisitions

Our long-held acquisition strategy is to acquire businesses with consistent earning power, good returns on equity and able and honest management and at sensible prices. In 2013 and 2012, we completed several smaller-sized business acquisitions, most of which were considered as “bolt-on” acquisitions to several of our existing business operations. Aggregate consideration paid for business acquisitions for the first nine months of 2013 was approximately $830 million and for the year ended December 31, 2012 was approximately $3.2 billion, which included $438 million for entities that will develop, construct and subsequently operate renewable energy generation facilities. We do not believe that these acquisitions were material, individually or in the aggregate, to our Consolidated Financial Statements.