Pat Rabbitte
Ceist:14 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Public Enterprise if she will give an up-date on the sale of Government shares in Telecom Éireann; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4639/99]
Vol. 500 No. 6
14 Mr. Rabbitte asked the Minister for Public Enterprise if she will give an up-date on the sale of Government shares in Telecom Éireann; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4639/99]
65 Mr. Callely asked the Minister for Public Enterprise the position regarding the sale and disposal of shares in Telecom Éireann; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [4663/99]
I propose to answer Questions Nos. 14 and 65 together.
The planning and preparation process for the initial public offering of shares in Telecom Éireann is making good progress in my Department.
Subject to market conditions, the IPO is planned for around the middle of this year.
I have set a number of very particular objectives for the Telecom Éireann IPO, as follows: to maximise the proceeds to be returned to the Exchequer; ensure a successful IPO; promote wider share ownership and ensure value for money on expenditure related to the sale.
A steering committee chaired by my Department and also representing the Department of Finance and the company and assisted by advisers is meeting regularly to ensure that this major undertaking remains on track. They are working diligently on the many different and important tasks that need to be completed in the coming months. These include legal, management and business due diligence; preparation of the company business plan; preliminary valuation exercises; corporate governance issues; prospectus drafting; issues concerning overall size and structure of the IPO; preparations for research analyst presentations; banks syndicate structure; planning for the domestic retail offer; liaison with the strategic partner, the unions and the employee share ownership trust company.