Italy-based A2A has won the public tender for EPCG, according to a statement from the government of Montenegro. A2A takes over the top spot after an offer of € 11.1 per share for EPCG from a Greece-based consortium was rejected yesterday. According to the Montenegrin government, the Greek consortium submitted a conditional offer which would have circumvented certain non-negotiable issues. Despite making an upbeat public announcement on Wednesday, the Greek consortium was unable to persuade the government that it intended to buy the stake at € 11.1 without demanding special conditions. Italy’s A2A offered € 8.4 per share (or a 12.3% premium to yesterday's close) for EPCG in a non-conditional offer. Our view: EPCG’s privatization story has finally reached a conclusion. With this latest deal A2A will hold close to a 35% stake in EPCG, having purchased 17% of minorities in previous transactions through the stock exchange. We expect a slightly negative or neutral market reaction to the news as we believe the market had expected the € 11.1 per share offer to be accepted. However, this trend is unlikely to continue in the days ahead. A2A’s bid of € 8.4 still offers a decent premium and leaves room for further market price growth. vladan.rankov@kbcsecurities.rs