3rd Apr 2007 14:21
National Grid PLC03 April 2007 03 April 2007 National Grid plc Sale of UK Wireless business for £2.5bn £1.8bn share buy-back National Grid plc ("National Grid") is pleased to announce that it has signedand expects to complete today an agreement with Macquarie UK Broadcast VenturesLimited, the parent company of Arqiva Limited, on the sale of its UK Wirelessbusiness for a total cash consideration of £2.5 billion.* The total consideration represents a multiple of 19.3 times EBITDA** for theyear ended 31 March 2006. Following the announcement on 16 November 2006 regarding the proposed demergerof the UK Wireless business, National Grid received approaches from variousparties seeking to purchase this business. National Grid's Board has determined,following a competitive process, that the agreed sale represents the mostattractive and certain outcome for our shareholders. The sale is expected toenhance earnings per share immediately. Following completion, National Grid is pleased to announce that it will return£1.8 billion to shareholders via an extension of the existing share buy-backprogramme. Steve Holliday, Chief Executive of National Grid, said: "We are delighted with the outcome of this transaction, which has secured anattractive premium for a great business which we have grown successfully. We areconfident that it delivers greater shareholder value than a demerger. Thisrepresents a significant step in our strategy of focussing on the UK and USelectricity and gas markets, and demonstrates our commitment to generatingshareholder value. Meanwhile we continue to progress the sale of our muchsmaller US Wireless business." The repurchase programme is expected to be effected on the London Stock Exchangeover the next 12 to 18 months and will be dependent on market and economicconditions. Shares will be repurchased in accordance with the Board's generalauthority to make market repurchases of ordinary shares, as approved byshareholders. The Board will seek shareholder approval to renew this authorityat our next AGM. Contacts InvestorsDavid Rees +44 (0)20 7004 3170 +44 (0)7901 511322 (m)Richard Smith +44 (0)20 7004 3172 +44 (0)7747 006321 (m)James Waite +44 (0)20 7004 3171 +44 (0)7977 440902 (m) MediaStewart Larque +44 (0)20 7004 3147 +44 (0)7831 864034 (m) Citigate Dewe RogersonAnthony Carlisle +44 (0)20 7638 9571 +44 (0)7973 611888(m) Additional information National Grid Wireless in the UK is the leading independent provider of networkinfrastructure to mobile network operators. National Grid Wireless operatesaround 5,000 active sites used for mobile communications. It is one of twoproviders of transmission networks for analogue and digital television and radiobroadcasters with around 750 purpose-built broadcast towers and associatedtransmission equipment. National Grid Wireless also holds licenses for twodigital television multiplexes utilised by broadcasters in the UK. For the year ended 31 March 2006, National Grid Wireless UK generated operatingprofit** of £70m on revenues of £297m and had gross assets of £1,451m. * Subject to a working capital adjustment. The purchaser has confirmed that allexisting employee rights will be on the same or comparable terms. ** Measured on a business performance basis. Business performance resultsrepresent the results of Wireless before exceptional items and remeasurements.Remeasurements are non-cash movements in the carrying value of financialinstruments and of certain commodity contracts that arise from changes inmark-to-market values or in exchange rates and are reflected in the incomestatement to the extent that hedge accounting is not achieved or is not fullyeffective. Cautionary statement This announcement contains certain statements that are neither reportedfinancial results nor other historical information. These statements areforward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the SecuritiesAct of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934,as amended. These statements include information with respect to National Grid'sfinancial condition, National Grid's results of operations and businesses,strategy, plans and objectives. Words such as "anticipates", "expects","intends", "plans", "believes", "seeks", "estimates", "may", "will", "continue","project" and similar expressions, as well as statements in the future tense,identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are notguarantees of National Grid's future performance and are subject to assumptions,risks and uncertainties that could cause actual future results to differmaterially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements.Many of these assumptions, risks and uncertainties relate to factors that arebeyond National Grid's ability to control or estimate precisely, such as delaysin obtaining, or adverse conditions contained in, regulatory approvals andcontractual consents, including those required to complete the proposedacquisition of KeySpan when or as planned, unseasonable weather affecting thedemand for electricity and gas, competition and industry restructuring, changesin economic conditions, currency fluctuations, changes in interest and taxrates, changes in energy market prices, changes in historical weather patterns,changes in laws, regulations or regulatory policies, developments in legal orpublic policy doctrines, the impact of changes to accounting standards andtechnological developments. Other factors that could cause actual results todiffer materially from those described in this announcement include the abilityto integrate the businesses relating to announced acquisitions with our existingbusiness and realise the expected synergies from such integration, theavailability of new acquisition opportunities and the timing and success offuture acquisition opportunities, the impact of the sales of businesses byNational Grid, the failure for any reason to achieve reductions in costs or toachieve operational efficiencies, the failure to retain key management, thebehaviour of UK electricity market participants on system balancing, the timingof amendments in prices to shippers in the UK gas market, the performance ofNational Grid's pension schemes and the regulatory treatment of pension costs,and any adverse consequences arising from outages on or otherwise affectingenergy networks, including gas pipelines, owned or operated by National Grid.For a more detailed description of some of these assumptions, risks anduncertainties, together with any other risk factors, please see National Grid'sfilings with and submissions to the US Securities and Exchange Commission (the"SEC") (and in particular the "Risk Factors" and "Operating and FinancialReview" sections in its most recent Annual Report on Form 20-F and the "RiskFactors" section in its Registration Statement on Form F-3 filed with the SEC on28 June 2006). Except as may be required by law or regulation, National Gridundertakes no obligation to update any of its forward-looking statements. Theeffects of these factors are difficult to predict. New factors emerge from timeto time and National Grid cannot assess the potential impact of any such factoron its activities or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors,may cause results to differ materially from those contained in anyforward-looking statement. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock ExchangeRelated Shares:
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