Cesky Telecom CEO P. Klima suggested in an interview in the Pravo newspaper that his company’s (unsuccessful) bid for a 49% Eurotel stake was between USD 1.1 and USD 1.2 bil. (recent reports have cited USD 1.2 bil.). More importantly, he also vaguely commented on the call option that Atlantic West, holder of the 49% Eurotel stake, reportedly has on Cesky Telecom’s 51% stake if the latter’s ownership changes. He said that, in most privatization scenarios, the issue does not represent a serious risk for Cesky Telecom privatization (we are not sure if this means that the option is not applicable in some cases). Neutral.
(Ondrej Datka)