TIM has been seeking offers for its Enterprise business, as the company’s board of directors evaluates the latest bids submitted for its networks unit. The Italian telecom giant initiated the process of seeking potential investors for its Enterprise unit, which was deemed a candidate for mergers and acquisitions under the restructuring plan presented last year.
According to unnamed sources in Bloomberg’s report, CEO Pietro Labriola had sent out invitation letters for potential investments. The Enterprise business, which encompasses Noovle’s cloud solutions, the Telsy security unit, and Olivetti, could potentially be worth over €6 billion in total. However, TIM is currently interested in selling a minority stake.
When the company received a bid from CVC Capital Partners for a minority stake in the Enterprise business last year, Italian press articles reported the bid valued TIM Enterprise at €6 billion. Although there were claims that the initial offer was raised to €7 billion following the disclosure of TIM’s separation plan, no confirmation has emerged on the outcome of CVC’s bid.
At the end of March, TIM’s gross financial debt amounted to nearly €32 billion, making it vital for the company to extract maximum value from bidders interested in its assets. The board has been assessing bids for its NetCo unit, which comprises fixed-line assets, the FiberCop FTTH unit, and international wholesale operator Sparkle.
As rumors suggest, TIM may opt for an investment from KKR, valued at €23 billion, including €2 billion in earn-outs. KKR’s bid, higher than the offer by the Macquarie/CdP Equity consortium, is more likely to get antitrust approval. Italian infrastructure fund manager F2i might also join as a potential investor alongside KKR. Exclusive discussions between KKR and TIM are anticipated to last until late August or early September.
Meanwhile, it remains uncertain whether CVC will re-enter negotiations for TIM Enterprise, or if any other interested parties will emerge. Based on the prolonged NetCo sale process, information on the progress of TIM Enterprise may be limited.
