Romania aims to list shares in incumbent Romtelecom on the stock exchange by the end of the year, according to outgoing communications and IT minister Dan Nica.
Speaking at a press conference in Bucharest, Nica said he hopes the listing will take place…
Romania aims to list shares in incumbent Romtelecom on the stock exchange by the end of the year, according to outgoing communications and IT minister Dan Nica.
Speaking at a press conference in Bucharest, Nica said he hopes the listing will take place “soon”, having taken “every precaution” to ensure conditions are optimal, local media reported.
Nica’s proposed successor, Razvan Cotovelea, was cited as saying the exact size and timing of the offering must be chosen carefully to avoid repeating past failures. The ministry, which owns 45.99% of Romtelecom, has made several unsuccessful attempts to privatise the telco in recent years. Greek telco OTE owns the remaining shares.
The ministry announced this week that is has signed a consultancy contract for the Romtelecom privatisation with a consortium led by Romanian financial advisory and investment firm Swiss Capital, also including UBS, Musat si Asociatii and BT Securities. Hogan Lovells, Banca Transilvania and KPMG also have advisory roles.
The consortium is required to deliver a proposal on the privatisation by 11 August, although this may be extended. The consultancy contract is set to expire on 31 December, although this too may be altered in certain circumstances, the ministry said.
Last July, a ministry official told TelecomFinance that it intends to list the shares on the Bucharest Stock Exchange, but a final decision would be made together with the consultants.
At the time, the spokesperson confirmed that Romtelecom shares had a nominal value of RON10 (US$3) each, valuing the 45.99% stake at RON146.5m (US$44.3m).
