THE consortium of Independent Newspapers and Mirror group has launched an eleventh hour £313 million sterling knockout bid for Westminster Press, the British regional newspaper arm of Pearson, according to yesterday's Sunday Telegraph. A spokesman for Independent Newspapers was unable to confirm the report.
Intense negotiations on the sale have been taking place over the weekend.
The identity of the successful bidder could be announced as early as today as Pearson, the publishing group which owns the Financial Times and Madame Tussaud, unveils its interim results.
Another report, in the Sunday Times, said Pearson was negotiating the sale with Newsquest, the newspaper group backed by US financier, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts, and the intention is to announce the sale today. However, the late increased bid by the Independent consortium could alter this time table.
Newsquest last year acquired Reed Elsevier's regional newspaper division for £205 million and is understood to have offered £300 million to buy out Westminster. Analysts had been predicting an offer of £350 million.
The Independent consortium's initial offer is thought to have been under £300 million. Industry sources last night said the initial offer probably still stood for the core business but that extra funds may have been offered for non core parts of Westminster.
This includes an over provision in its pension fund of £8 million. However, some sources are suggesting that this surplus might not now be deliverable.
Independent Newspapers is a 46 per cent shareholder in the Mirror Group. The consortium is a 50/50 arrangement with each company sharing the funding of such an acquisition. Both Independent Newspapers and Mirror are keen to expand their regional network in Britain.
Westminster's flagship titles include the Brighton Times and the Oxford Times.
Pearson is expected to report poor results today. It has already warned that it will have to contend with rationalisation costs. These could amount to £30 million, following the reorganisation of Mindscape, its US computer games business.
Pearson is also suffering from sluggish sales at Penguin. And the educational publishing side could still be feeling the impact of the takeover of Harper Collins educational business, according to analysts.
