Moriarty tribunal disclosures linking Mr Denis O'Brien with the finances of Mr Michael Lowry will not undermine his bid for Eircom, a spokesman for the telecoms multimillionaire said last night.
Meanwhile, the three consortiums which have expressed an interest in buying Eircom are expected to indicate that they will all bid €1.20 a share next Monday, May 28th, the deadline for indicative offers. The ultimate price offered could be €1.25 per share, according to market sources. Most doubt the shares could attract €1.30 a share.
On Monday all bidders will have to furnish information on their bid structures and provide concrete details on who is behind their bids.
Mr O'Brien's eIsland consortium has indicated that it would pay €1.20 per share for Eircom's fixed-line assets. However, on the same day he met the board with this offer, the Valentia consortium fronted by Sir Anthony O'Reilly wrote to Eircom, effectively asking it not to make any hasty decisions and signalling that it would make a firm bid itself.
It is also understood that the third party, Mr Dermot Desmond's International Investment & Underwriting, has previously said it would match the eIsland offer when it indicated that it would pay €1.10 per share.
EIsland has not specified who is backing its bid, aside from Chase Manhattan bank. It was reported yesterday that IIU's backers include US venture capital group Advent (former backer of Mr O'Brien when he ran Esat) and Doughty Hanson. An IIU spokesman was unavailable for comment.
It is understood that all parties are assiduously courting the Employee Share Ownership Trust (ESOT). It holds 15 per cent of Eircom and wants to increase this to 30 per cent. Its approval is seen as crucial to the success of any bid.
