Consignia looking to sell overseas ops
Consignia PLC chairman Allan Leighton is planning the sale of the Post Office and Royal Mail Group’s overseas operations which could be worth up to 500 mln stg, the Observer reported, citing senior Consignia sources.
The sources told the newspaper Leighton is “sceptical” about the value of the General Logistics Service division to the overall business, and that he prefers a sale which would reduce the company’s debt by between 450-500 mln stg.
UK’s Consignia plans overseas unit sale – paper
LONDON, July 27 (Reuters) – Britain’s struggling postal operator Consignia is planning to sell an overseas unit to raise up to 500 million pounds ($783 million) to cut debt, the Observer (Stockholm: OBS.ST – news) newspaper said, citing unnamed sources at the ADVERTISEMENT
firm.
General Logistics Services (GLS), which has a majority stake in the German parcel distribution business and employs 11,000 people across a further 14 countries in Europe, has been given until next March to start generating cash for Consignia.
So far it is not doing so, the Observer said.
“I would say the odds are now heavily in favour of them (GLS) going,” it quoted a senior Consignia source as saying.
Consignia, which is changing its name to the Royal Mail Group Plc by the end of this year, is losing around 1.2 million pounds a day, and is trying to revive its business before full competition is introduced in UK mail delivery by 2007.
