News
Report says all-cash offer values the fibre network company at over 820m.
Telecom Italia has made an all-cash offer for Metroweb that values the Italian fibre network company at more than €820 million, Reuters reported.
Citing unnamed sources, the news agency said the Italian incumbent operator is willing to buy all of Metroweb or a stake of 67.7%. Metroweb is currently owned by state-lender Cassa Depositi e Prestiti (CDP) and infrastructure fund F2i.
It has previously been reported that Telecom Italia was negotiating a deal to swap a stake in its wholesale arm TI Sparkle for fibre operator Metroweb. However, the sources told Reuters that an all-cash offer had been made because no agreement could be reached on how much Sparkle was worth.
Acquiring Metroweb would ramp up the rivalry between Telecom Italia and electricity provider Enel, which last month unveiled plans for a €2.5 billion fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) network, The electricity supplier is also reported to have made an informal offer for a majority stake in the fibre network company in recent days.
Telecom Italia has been repeatedly linked with Metroweb in recent years. With a 7,200-kilometre dark fibre network, Metroweb would give Telecom Italia’s footprint a significant boost across the market.
