Smyth jumps aboard the REO speedwagon: Just eight months after losing his epic battle to retain control of Dunloe Ewart to Liam Carroll, Noel Smyth has again popped up on the plc stage.
His appearance on the share register at Real Estate Opportunities (REO) last week raises intriguing possibilities that could bring him into direct conflict with that other well-known duo on the Irish property scene, John Ronan and Richard Barrett, of Treasury Holdings.
REO is the brainchild of Treasury, which, along with Aberdeen Asset Management, formed it as a split capital investment trust in 2001.
Mr Smyth could, of course, simply be investing in what he sees as an undervalued stock that has fallen on hard times.
But he is not generally seen as a minority investor and his choice of investment - a property company - is interesting. Could he perhaps be seeking to gain control of another publicly quoted vehicle, similar to Dunloe Ewart, with which to pursue his property interests?
If this is the case, he would appear to be on a collision course with Treasury, which controls 35 per cent of REO. This time, however, Mr Smyth would find himself in the role adopted by Mr Carroll in the Dunloe Ewart saga, from whom he will have learned plenty about being a difficult dissident shareholder.
Certainly, REO's action in referring Mr Smyth's stake to the Takeover Panel in the UK - on the grounds that he may be acting in concert with another major shareholder, disgruntled British investment group Dawnay Day - suggests his investment intentions are not seen as altogether benign.
Meanwhile, REO will seek to renew its authority to buy back up to 15 per cent of its ordinary shares at its annual meeting, to be held at the Pomme D'Or Hotel in St Helier, Jersey, on July 29th.
Assuming it is granted this, expect further buybacks, which would have the effect of bolstering Treasury's control over REO by further increasing its shareholding at the expense of Dawnay Day's.
Western Wireless has eye on Iraq network:
Western Wireless, the US firm that owns Irish mobile company Meteor, may be lining up a bid for the contract to build Iraq's mobile phone network.
Iraq's US-led administration yesterday invited bidders for three mobile licences to express their interest in what is likely to be one of the most lucrative contracts awarded in the state. The rumour within industry is that the international arm of Western Wireless is preparing a bid.
The firm's international unit has made a habit of collecting licences in "unsettled" areas such as the Ivory Coast and Haiti, suggesting a tour of duty in Iraq wouldn't daunt its Scottish chief, Stuart Sherriff - who is also Meteor's chief executive.
Western Wireless's US credentials should give it a boost in the tender process, and its ability to provide either the European mobile standard GSM or the US standard CDMA technology could help smooth political sensitivities in the US about which system Iraq should adopt.
Certainly, building a mobile network in Iraq is likely to prove an easier proposition than in Ireland, where Meteor had to fight a swathe of legal battles to secure its licence. In the Republic, it also faces a constant battle against planning restrictions to erect masts.
Indeed, with Meteor netting just 4 per cent market share in 24 months, perhaps it is time the US venture capitalists behind Eircom considered buying Meteor. At least this would enable Western Wireless to focus on liberating Iraq.
Confusing ministers:
Relations between TV3 and RTÉ are always fraught, with the CanWest/Granada-owned station constantly complaining about the licence fee increases doled out to RTÉ.
But its lobbying campaign to get politicians to take a tougher line with RTÉ often appears a bit strange. The station, it now transpires (thanks to the FOI Act), sent a letter last December, just before the licence fee decision was taken, to the Minister for Transport, Mr Brennan, of all people.
With LUAS, CIÉ, Aer Rianta, the Port Tunnel and penalty points on his plate at the time, it was highly unlikely Mr Brennan was going to able to do much for TV3. But God loves a trier.
In this case, the letter from the trier - TV3 boss Rick Hetherington - was simply passed on to the man making the decision, the Minister for Communications, not Transport, Mr Ahern.
