CNBC 16.06.2010
Tesmec goes ahead after 2 Italian IPOs pulled
MILAN, June 16 (Reuters) - Engineering company Tesmec is going ahead with its initial public offering (IPO) valuing it at up to 107 million euros ($132.1 million), saying its small size will help after two Italian IPOs were delayed this week. Tesmec will be the first IPO on Italy's main stock market since online fashion retailer Yoox's last December. There have been three IPOs on the AIM Italia market for small caps this year. On Tuesday ferry operator Moby cited uncertain markets for postponing its IPO. And on Monday CIR said it was delaying an IPO of care-home unit KOS for more stable markets. However, Tesmec Chairman and Chief Executive Ambrogio Caccia Dominioni was optimistic about the IPO. "The bourse can open possibilities in this growth phase," he said at a news conference referring to Tesmec's sector in overhead cabling and trench equipment for pipelines. "A small capitalisation can gain attention in a complex market context. We have plans we want to achieve quickly. The opportunities (from an IPO) are superior to the risks that we would run staying in stand-by," he said. Tesmec sees scope for geographic expansion in China, Russia and the U.S. while it wants to expand its technology and add more service activities to construction. Private equity was interested in a minority stake last year at a higher valuation but the company prefers the shareholder structure resulting from a bourse listing and the scope to expand and cut debt, the chairman said. The share offering, coordinated by Italian investment Mediobanca, runs to June 25. The IPO comprises an offering of 53.2 million shares at between 0.7-1.0 euros each, including 16.5 million in fresh capital. Ninety percent of the offering will be to institutions the rest to retail Italian investors. The exercise of a greenshoe option for sale of a further eight million shares, coming from existing shareholders, would take Tesmec's free float to 57 percent. The Caccia Dominioni family will hold 30 percent after the share sale. Italian financial investor Gianluca Vacchi will see his Tesmec stake cut to 2.5 percent, from 40 percent, via the IPO and with a greenshoe exercise. Caccia Dominioni said he was not under pressure from Vacchi to go to the bourse. At the end of March net debt was 48.2 million euros. (Reporting by Nigel Tutt; Editing by Andrew Callus, Sharon Lindores) ($1=.8101 Euro) ((nigel.tutt@thomsonreuters.com; +39 02 66129723; Reuters Messaging:nigel.tutt.reuters.com@reuters.net) Keywords: ITALY IPO TESMEC/ COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
Tesmec S.p.A. - via Zanica, 17/O - 24050 Grassobbio (Bergamo) - Italy Tel. +39.035.4232911 - Fax +39.035.4522444 - info@tesmec.it - www.tesmec.com
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