If you want to make a bid on Telecom New Zealand's Australian subsidiary AAPT, you'd better hurry up, because you'll only have until the end of this week.
However, TNZ revealed that the value of AAPT was much less than the $1.8 billion it originally paid for it in 2000. After reviewing the service provider's performance and future potential, TNZ reduced its book value of the service provider to $548 million.
Since 2006, the NZ group had been looking for right buyer to take over the company. Among the potential suitors were SingTel Optus, Pacnet and most recently TPG Telecom (ASX: TPM.AX). In early May, a report emerged that TPG, which had also just acquired wholesale provider PIPE networks, placed a $384 million bid on AAPT. Although no official deal has been announced, TNZ apparently liked TPG's bid versus those made by Pacnet, private equity firm Quadrangle Group and Optus.
For more:
- TeleGeography has this article
- Telecompaper's article on the TPG bid
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