Belgian government gives green light to post office to find partner
The Belgian government has given the country’s postal service La Poste/De Post the green light to find an industrial partner, according to a report in Le Soir daily newspaper.
The report says budget and state enterprise minister Johan Vande Lanotte approved the decision on Sunday.
According to the paper, La Poste/De Post will invite potential industrial partners to take a minority stake in the company.
The Belgian state will retain majority ownership, the paper said.
Financial consultants from Morgan Stanley have been selected to conduct a preliminary investigation over the next three months to determine the selection criteria for the partner, the paper said.
The whole process will take between six and nine months, the report added.
Germany’s Deutsche Post AG and the Netherlands’ TPG NV are believed to be the frontrunners, but the Austria, Swiss and Canadian postal services are also thought to be interested, the paper says.
A joint offer from TPG and the French post service is also possible, the paper added.
