The Eircom board will meet next Tuesday to review progress in takeover talks with eIsland and Valentia. It is possible, but not certain, that the board might be in a position by then to decide whether to recommended either of the offers. The directors will also set a date for the publication of the company's annual results which had been due yesterday. The figures are now expected towards the end of next week.

Intensive three-way negotiations have continued all week between Eircom, the Employee Share Ownership Plan Trustee (ESOP) and the two firm bidders.

Contact has also been maintained with the other two potential suitors, who missed last Monday's deadline for lodging bids - Mr Dermot Desmond's International Investment & Underwriting (IIU), and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts (KKR), the US buy-out group. Any bid would need to have the support of the ESOP - which owns 15 per cent of the company - for the board to be able to support it.

The trust has indicated to eIsland and Valentia that it will support them only if it is allowed increase its stake in the company. The ESOP and its advisers are also looking at the structure of the bids and, in particular, the amount and quality of the debt being raised by the bidders to fund their deals.