French telecoms firm Iliad , which recently bought Polish mobile operator Play, said on Friday it had made an indicative offer for the whole of Liberty Global’s Polish fixed internet operator UPC.
The bid for 100 per cent of UPC Poland’s shares gives the company an enterprise value of 7.3 billion zlotys (US$1.90 billion), Iliad said.
Iliad said the bid’s valuation was based on estimated earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) of 782 million zlotys in 2021 for UPC Poland.
“In line with our ambition to become a true convergent player in Poland, we’re currently looking at different options on our broadband activity,” Iliad’s chief executive Thomas Reynaud said in a call with investors.
One option is the “potential acquisition of a broadband player on the Polish market,” Reynaud said, mentioning the group’s approach to UPC Poland.
Another option would be to set up Iliad’s own broadband company to roll out optic fibre technology in Poland, he said.