Eircom has confirmed its plans to float on the Dublin and London Stock exchanges in the first half of March - subject to market conditions.
Valentia Holdings, the owners of Eircom, say it will seek to raise €300m in a primary placement of new shares to clear the company's debt. As part of the flotation, Valentia will change its name to Eircom Group.
Valentia also said it would offer a 'substantial' secondary offer of existing ordinary shares.
'We are delighted that Eircom is returning to the market,' commented Eircom CEO Philip Nolan.
'We believe there remains scope for further efficiency gains over the years ahead and this, together with our position in the Irish market, our strong brand and the potential for broadband services, gives confidence that we will be able to serve the interests of customers and shareholders alike,' he said.
Eircom is the former state owned telecommunications provider in Ireland. It was listed on the Dublin, London and New York stock exchanges in its first IPO in July 1999. This proved to be a painful experience for thousands of small Irish investors, who lost millions when the telecoms bubble burst.
In May 2001, Valentia completed the demerger of its mobile business Eircell which was purchased by Vodafone.
Eircom was delisted from the Irish, UK and US stock exchanges in December 2001 after it was bought by Valentia for €3 billion.
It is believed the flotation could raise between €3.2 billion and €3.9 billion. Employees, who own 29% of the company through a trust, could receive payments in the region of €13,000 each. The remaining 70% is owned by Tony O'Reilly, Providence Equity Partners and George Soros. In the year ending March 2003, Eircom made an operating profit of €180m.
