The Serbian government reportedly intends to announce privatisation plans for Telekom Srbija by the end of the month.
The launch of an international tender for the telco is expected for September with the aim of closing a deal by the end of the…
The Serbian government reportedly intends to announce privatisation plans for Telekom Srbija by the end of the month.
The launch of an international tender for the telco is expected for September with the aim of closing a deal by the end of the year.
Local newspaper Blic cited an unnamed source as saying the government aims to raise up to €2bn (US$2.6bn) from the sale of 100% of the incumbent telco’s shares. The sale will be handled by the Ministry of Finance and Economics.
The state currently has a 58.1% stake, Telekom Serbija owns 20% of its own shares and the remainder are held by small shareholders.
According to the report, the government believes Telekom Srbija’s improved financial performance recently make a €2bn price tag attainable. There have already been informal talks with potential buyers from the US, Russia, Germany, Austria and Abu Dhabi, the report stated.
Speculation surrounding the possible privatisation has continued for some time. In May 2011, the state abandoned plans to sell a 51% stake in the telco as Telekom Austria’s €1.1bn offer fell short of the minimum €1.4bn it had wanted to raise.
In August 2012, local media reported that the government had decided to sell the telco via tender in 2013. In September 2012, local media quoted the minister of finance and economics, Mladan Dinkic, as saying the government was prepared to sell the company for at least €2.5bn to help address its budget deficit.
The state regained control of Telekom Srbija in December 2011 when it agreed to buy back a 20% stake from Greek incumbent OTE for €380m. It was suggested at the time that the government hoped the acquisition would make it easier to advance long-delayed plans to find a new investor for the company.
Telekom Srbija declined to comment. The finance ministry was not immediately available for comment.
