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Rome (pte032/13.01.2005/12:15) - Italy's largest utility Enel http://www.enel.it has invited six private equity funds to consider bids for part of its Wind telecommunications subsidiary http://www.wind.it . As the Financial Times http://www.ft.com reports, the invitation keeps alive the prospect of an initial public offering of Wind, which Enel said last month it was planning to launch by September 2006. It also opens the possibility of competitive bids for Wind.
Wind, which is 100 per cent owned by Enel, is Italy's third-largest mobile phone operator and its second-largest fixed-line company. However, its fixed-line business is struggling to compete against Telecom Italia, the market leader. Enel wants to withdraw gradually from the telecoms business to concentrate on its core electricity and gas activities. Wind is targeted by an international consortium including Wilbur Ross, a New York financier, Philippe Nguyen, a French private equity specialist, and Cesare Romiti, a former chairman of Fiat.
Last month, Enel rejected a bid from the consortium, who valued Wind at 12 billion euros. However, it is expected that the consortium, which offered to make an initial cash investment of 2 billion euros in Wind, will make a revised bid next week.
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