Greece must consider selling “crown jewels” including its stake in OTE if it is to pay off loans to the IMF and European Union, according to a Financial Times editorial.
The Greek state still owns a 20% stake in the telecoms incumbent, which along with…
Greece must consider selling “crown jewels” including its stake in OTE if it is to pay off loans to the IMF and European Union, according to a Financial Times editorial.
The Greek state still owns a 20% stake in the telecoms incumbent, which along with sports betting and lottery company OPAP, is considered one of very few worthwhile assets.
In May 2008 Deutsche Telekom acquired a 25% plus one share stake in the Greek operator and granted the Greek state two put options to sell further stakes. Exercising the first of these, Greece sold a 5% stake to the German incumbent. It will be able to sell a second, 10% stake, by 2011.
According to one source close to the operators, “It’s true that there is one put option left, but the price is depressed so the timing is not right for the Greek state”.
According to Deutsche Telekom documents, “Put option II can be exercised at market price plus a premium initially of 20% for a period of twelve months from November 10, 2009, after which it can be exercised at market price plus a premium of 15% until December 31, 2011.
According to OTE documents, as of March 2010, the operator’s shareholders were the Greek state (12.93%), DEKA S.A. (3.07%), IKA-ETAM (4%), Deutsche Telekom (30%), institutional investors (39.6%) and private investors (10.4%).
Deutsche Telekom CEO Rene Obermann has said there are no plans to sell out of OTE, insisting that the “outlook for the future reaches beyond two to three years”.
Officials at the Greek Finance Ministry could not be reached by press time.
In 2009, OTE contributed E2bn to DT’s core earnings. OTE shares are currently trading at US$3.63, an 8% rise over a week ago but a 22% fall compared to one month ago.
