Vivendi welcomed this Friday the “serene and constructive climate” in which the consultation with the Italian Government on the future of Telecom Italia (TIM) is taking place, of which the French media giant is the main shareholder with a 23.75% stake. The new Italian government headed by Giorgia Meloni promised at the end of November to outline before the end of the year the “best possible market solutions” for Telecom Italia, a highly indebted company that it considers “strategic.”
Arnaud de Puyfontaine, president of Vivendi’s directorate, is declared “reconnaissant” by the Italian government to initiate negotiations “dans le but de trouver une solution partagée qui réponde aux objectifs du gouvernement et satisfasse tous les actionnaires dans l’intérêt From the country”. He believes that this “serene” climate could pave the way “to consider other investments in Italy that could seal the partnership between Italy and France,” according to a press release issued in Italian.
A meeting that includes the Italian Caisse des dépôts on Thursday
In late November, the Italian government had suspended a potential CDP bid for the incumbent operator’s network. The negotiations between the CDP and Telecom Italia had come up against the price of the network, considered too high by the State. Estimates of the network’s value ranged from the 15 billion euros advanced by analysts to the 31 billion euros claimed by Vivendi.
Several investment funds, including the American KKR, are in line to participate in a possible takeover bid (OPA) in the TIM network, together with the State. The CEO of Telecom Italia, Pietro Labriola, said in mid-December that the operator had to “sell some assets” to reduce its debt, which amounts to 25.5 billion euros.
A troisième met among the representatives of Telecom Italia, Vivendi and the Caisse des dépôts italienne (CDP), the other grand actionnaire of TIM with a share of 9.81%, a eu lieu jeudi au ministère des Entreprises and a other devrait suivre next week.
Source: BFM TV
