Telenet rules itself out of bid for KPN’s BASE
Belgium’s largest cable operator Telenet said today it does not see itself making any major acquisitions any time soon, effectively ruling itself out of making a bid for KPN’s BASE.
Telenet had submitted a non-binding bid for BASE, Belgium’s third-biggest mobile phone company, people familiar with the process told Reuters last week.
Other bidders were media group De Persgroep, along with private equity firms Blackstone, Providence and Cinven CINV.UL.
KPN, the struggling Dutch telecom operator in the sights of Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim, has drawn a number of bids for its BASE unit, which could help it raise up to €1.7bn (£1.27bn) crucial to cutting its debt.
Telenet also said it plans to take on up to £700m in debt and use the money to buy back shares.
“Telenet … intends to implement a shareholder remuneration policy consisting mainly of share repurchases,” it said in a statement.