Incumbent telcos are seen as national strategic assets and their privatisation is rarely a straightforward process.
Take Telekom Srbija, whose upcoming sale is now very much in the news. The process got under way in earnest in late June, when the government signaled its intention to privatise the company, until now majority (58.11%) state owned.
If it all sounded familiar it was, as four years earlier a similar initiative failed, arguably in surprising fashion. At that time, Telekom Srbija was valued at €2.4 billion and the government was seeking a minimum of €1.4 billion for a 51% stake in the company. It received only one offer – €1.1 billion from Telekom Austria – and decided to shelve the sale.
It’s now back on again, along with a wider privatisation programme that is proving to be anything but popular. In the media sector, it includes the sale of the long-established news agency Tanjug and Belgrade-based broadcaster Studio B.
The indications are that interest in Telekom Srbija is much higher than previously, with early reports saying that up to 14 non-binding offers have been received for the company. However, on Thursday, August 13 this total was revised down in the local media to eight. These will apparently be shortlisted at the beginning of next week (August 17), when binding offers will be invited.
So what do we know so far about the (non-binding) bidders? Perhaps the most interesting thing is that most of them are apparently US investment funds, a fact conformed by no less than the US ambassador to Serbia, who has revealed that they have asked for and received advice about Serbia from the US embassy.
The others most probably include Deutsche Telekom, Telekom Slovenije, which interestingly enough is itself in the process of being privatised, and – in some shape or form – Telekom Austria.
We say the latter as it has been reported that having previously failed to secure Telekom Srbija, the Austrian company’s majority owner, the Mexican billionaire, may instead submit an offer.
Much more will become clearer in the next few days, as the privatisation of Telekom Srbija moves into to a new and critical phase.
For its part, the Serbian government is unlikely to sell the telco on the cheap.
