The sale of a cable operator is planned to kick off in October, according to TelecomFinance sources.
Private equity firm Mid Europa Partners and the management team have appointed Credit Suisse to find a buyer for Polish cable operator Aster.
A source…
The sale of a cable operator is planned to kick off in October, according to TelecomFinance sources.
Private equity firm Mid Europa Partners and the management team have appointed Credit Suisse to find a buyer for Polish cable operator Aster.
A source close to the seller said that cable operators, telcos and a handful of private equity firms have shown interest in the transaction.
Market specialists seem to agree that cable operators UPC, Vectra and Multimedia Polska are the most likely buyers, but one source also mentioned Netia as a potential candidate. Another source suggested that Vectra and Multimedia Polska could team up with private equity firms for a bid. Swedish private equity firm EQT previously hinted its intention to take part in the consolidation of the Polish cable market.
The plan is to sign a deal in December.
A source close to the company said Aster was 5.5 times leveraged with an all PLN-denominated senior debt, about E100m of mezzanine debt and about E50m worth of PIK debt. Its main lenders are BNP Paribas, Credit Agricole, Credit Suisse, ING, GE Capital and Unicredit. It has over E65m EBITDA.
Mid Europa and the management team acquired Aster in March 2006 for PLN1.6bn (E412m), including a debt package of E270m.
The cable is a quadruple-play service provider, offering television, broadband internet mobile and fixed-line services. It has about 385,000 subscribers, according to Mid Europa?s website.
