Leinster Leader Group starts assessment of buyout offers

The owners of the Leinster Leader newspapers are preparing to start a due diligence exercise after about 10 bidders tabled indicative offers for the regional media group.

It was unclear last night whether any of the bids were in the €100 million range mooted by sources close to the Leinster Leader board, a price that was questioned by several regional media sources who have suggested that a maximum of €70 million was a more realistic price.

However, group chairman John McStay said in a statement last night that he was pleased with the level of interest.

"This interest has come both from Ireland and overseas and includes existing industry players and private equity funds," he said.

The corporate finance division in PricewaterhouseCoopers, which is advising the board, is known to have contacted several venture capitalists and newspaper companies in their efforts to drum up interest in the Naas-based group.

In advance of the sale process, which began six weeks ago, the group was said to have received two unsolicited offers, possibly from British-based venture capitalists.

Some other Irish-based media companies are known to have taken a look at the group, which wants to retain ownership of its properties and buildings after the sale of its seven newspaper titles.

These titles are: the Dundalk Democrat, Leinster Express, Leinster Leader, Limerick Leader, Limerick Chronicle, Offaly Express and the Tallaght-based Echo.

The board said in a statement that it had received "a large number" of expressions of interest in buying the group.

"Over the coming days, the board will assess these approaches and, through its advisers PricewaterhouseCoopers, contact the parties involved," it said.

"Based on their initial assessment, the board confirms that it is their intention to proceed to the second stage of the process whereby a number of short-listed parties will be given access to further information on the group with a view to submitting formal offers."

The due diligence exercise is likely to continue into August and no deal is expected before September.