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As France reels from record heat, JPMorgan leads race to buy cooling firm in spite of cultural aversion to A/C

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As France reels from record heat, JPMorgan leads race to buy cooling firm in spite of cultural aversion to A/C

By James Franey Published July 1, 2026, 3:47 p.m. ET

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As France boils under record summer temperatures, the race is on for a French cooling and heating network operator — and JPMorgan Chase is currently leading the competition.

JPMorgan has reportedly emerged as the frontrunner to buy Idex for at least $3.5 billion from the Paris-based private equity firm Antin Infrastructure Partners in spite of a widespread cultural aversion to air-conditioning, Bloomberg reported.

Tourists and Parisians cool off in the Trocadero fountains with the Eiffel Tower in the background during a heatwave. 4
France has been hit by a heatwave over the past two weeks that has resulted in 1,000 excess deaths, sparking a debate among the country’s lawmakers on whether they should roll out A/C nationwide. Jeanne Accorsini/SIPA/Shutterstock

The money-spinning division, led by longtime executive Mary Erdoes, reportedly looks set to beat Canada’s CPP Investments to the company that keeps Paris’ business district, La Defense, from turning into a sauna as suited-up French bankers sweat over what the government is going to tax next.

Temperatures have repeatedly topped 104 degrees Fahrenheit in recent days, with official figures showing at least 1,000 excess deaths tied to the heat.

It’s put French — and European — disdain for A/C to the test, with even the tree-hugging Greens conceding some air-conditioning may be unavoidable, BBC reported.

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While French elites have spent years wagging fingers at air-conditioning as American excess and bad for the planet, regular Parisians have been left sweating through hotel rooms and apartments with little more than open windows and a shrug.

Reps for JPMorgan declined to comment. Antic Infrastructure Partners also declined to comment.

Workers and others find shade on the steps of the Grande Arche during high temperatures in Paris. 4
Idex already provides state-of-the-art cooling systems to La Defense, the French capital’s business district. Bloomberg via Getty Images

American tourists have been puzzled by their oldest ally’s aversion to Arctic blasts of ice-old air, enduring sky-high temperatures in hotel rooms with no A/C as locals seemingly shrug it off — until now.

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