Telecable buyer Zegona looking to create £1-3bn company

Zegona Communications, the UK-based investment group that acquired Asturias region cable operator Telecable earlier this year, aims to create a business worth between £1 billion (€1.36 billion) and £3 billion through its ‘buy-fix-sell’ strategy of acquiring and restructuring European cable and telecom businesses.

According to the company’s share prospectus, published ahead of Zegona’s completion of its move from the Alternative Investment Market to the main London stock market,  Zegona’s directors believe that opportunities exist “to create significant value for Shareholders through a properly executed ‘Buy-Fix-Sell’ strategy being applied to selected assets within the European network-based communication and entertainment services sector”, with Telecable the first such acquisition.

The company has said that that its entire issued share capital has now been admitted to the London Stock Exchange’s Official List and that trading of its ordinary shares on the AIM had been cancelled.

Zegona said the move would enable it to increase its profile and attract a broader range of investors in advance of further acquisitions.

“We are very pleased to have acquired Telecable and having done so, it is an appropriate time for Zegona to move to the Official List. We are working closely with the team in Asturias to support the robust strategy already in place and to complement it with our knowledge and experience to further enhance the customer proposition and business performance,” said Eamonn O’Hare, CEO.

Separately, Basque Country cable operator Euskaltel has reportedly secured a €900 million loan to pay for its acquisition of Galicia-region operator R. Euskaltel will use the loan to pay €600 million to current R owners CVC and Abanca and will use €300 million to refinance the Galician operator’s debt.