Telecom Italia has agreed to sell its landline network to KKR & Co. (KKR & Co) in a government-backed deal worth about 22 billion euros ($23.6 billion), according to people familiar with the matter.
After a marathon meeting that began on Friday, the telecom company’s board of directors approved the sale of the network to the American private equity investment giant on Sunday without making approval of the deal conditional on a shareholder vote, according to insiders who requested anonymity because the decision has not yet been announced.
The approval came despite the opposition of the telecommunications company’s largest shareholder, Vivendi SE.
A victory for the CEO
The people familiar with the matter added that KKR estimates the total network value at around €22 billion, including gains if the network is merged with smaller rival Open Fiber SpA. The deal does not include Sparkle, the telecom company’s submarine cables unit, which is valued at around €1 billion.
The decision represents a victory for the telecommunications company’s CEO, Pietro Labriola, who is the main architect of the plan to sell the network, an outcome that has the blessing of the administration of Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, as the agreement with KKR will allow the company, which was once fully owned by the state, to reduce its accumulated debt, while… Allowing the government to retain control over assets of strategic importance.
Spokesmen for Telecom Italia and KKR declined to comment on the matter.
Telecom Italia values its terrestrial network at $21.5 billion in a government sale
2023-11-05 21:36:46
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