Time for Telecom to deliver on high hopes

After the euphoria surrounding the first major privatisation of a State utility in the Republic, the time has arrived for the staff and management at Telecom Eireann to deliver on the hopes of half a million private investors, to say nothing of the institutions.

Within hours of its launch, demand for a piece of the cake had elevated Telecom to the rarefied heights of the second-largest company on the Irish Stock Exchange, displacing Bank of Ireland despite its hundreds of years of history.

The current price of Telecom shares in the grey market puts it at a sizeable premium to its peers in Europe. While a lot of that has to do with the huge demand for the stock, there is also a feeling in some quarters that, on fundamentals, the group is overvalued at the flotation price.

It is in the staff's interest to make sure the company works, as they now own 14.9 per cent of it, a major shareholding by any standards.

But it will be up to Alfie Kane and his team to ensure the company becomes a profitable and competitive player in the demanding telecoms market. As Mary O'Rourke said to Mr Kane after they rang the bell in New York to start trading in the stock: "You're on your own now, chum."

He may find his new masters, the shareholders, as demanding as any minister.