Key owner of National Mediagroup Yuri Kovalchuk takes the assets of Suleiman Kerimov under his roof.
Photo: Sergey Semyenov
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National Mediagroup to Clinch Record Deal with Cable TV
National Mediagroup, where Rossia Bank of Yuri Kovalchuk is the principal holder, is buying out from Suleiman Kerimov the majority stake in Russia’s biggest operator of cable TV, National Telecommunications. The deal is expected to be closed this week and its budget will exceed $1 billion, hitting multifold the record size of the cable deals.
National Mediagroup will take over National Telecommunications, said a top manager of a big media holding. A source close to holders of Mediagroup specified that the holding will buy out 51 percent in the company, Severstal and Surgutneftegaz will acquire 12 percent each, while the remaining stocks will be distributed between three big banks of Russia. The deal is likely to be closed by the end of this week, the source said without giving names of the banks.
The parties have agreed in principle but they are still bargaining about the asset worth. “It is the question of $1.2 billion to $1.3 billion,” said a source with one of the capital banks consulting on the deal.
National Telecommunications is the largest player on Russia’s market of cable TV. The aggregate subscriber base of its providers has reached 4.5 million. The company’s revenues were $215.9 million past year, EBITDA stood at $120.2 million. Nafta-Moscow holds 98.7 percent in National Telecommunications, and Delta Private Equity owns the remainder.
Yuri Kovalchuk has been setting up National Mediagroup since the start of this year. Nowadays, the holding owns 68 percent in REN TV and 72 percent in TRK Petersburg – The Fifth Channel and the talks about buying out a stake in Izvestia Newspaper are nearing the end. According to informal data, Rossia Bank has 54.96 percent in National Mediagroup, Surgutneftegaz owns 19.49 percent, Severstal holds 19.49 percent and SOGAZ Group has 6.06 percent.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of Apr. 23, 2008
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