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BT pushes for Airtel float
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January 16, 2001: 5:48 a.m. ET
U.K. firm seeks debt relief through offering in Spanish cell phone firm
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LONDON (CNNfn) - British Telecom said Tuesday it's evaluating with partner Vodafone a public offering for their joint-owned Spanish mobile operator Airtel.
The former British telephone monopoly has approached Vodafone, a key cellular service rival and the world's leading cell-phone operator, about an initial public offering of the Spanish firm by the end of 2001.
"We are in the early stage of discussions with Vodafone and Airtel management about the possibility of an IPO," a BT spokesman said. Analysts have previously valued Airtel at around  24 billion ($22.6 billion).
Vodafone declined to comment.
BT lost out to Vodafone when the two firms battled to gain control of Airtel last summer. A 30 percent stake came up for grabs when Spanish bank BSCH sought to exit its Airtel investment.
BT executives are scrambling to reduce a debt burden of about £30 billion ($44.33 billion). Cutting that debt, the spokesman said, would be one of "lots of factors" for the partners to consider in moving ahead with the offering.
Vodafone controls 73.8 percent of Airtel, some of which it acquired as part of its purchase of U.S.-based AirTouch in 1998. BT holds 17.8 percent. The rest is owned by two Spanish financial institutions, Acciona, which owns 5.4 percent, and Torreal, at 3 percent.
Airtel is Spain's second-largest mobile operator. An IPO would have to jostle for space with several other huge cellular offerings this year. France Telecom (PFTE), Deutsche Telekom (FDTE) and BT itself all plan to list their cell phone subsidiaries.
Amid weakness for many telecom stocks on Tuesday, shares of BT (BT-A) slipped 2.8 percent to 671 pence in mid-morning London trading, while Vodafone (VOD) shed 2.6 percent to 225.5 pence. 
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