December 7 (SeeNews) - Austrian industrial and utility group BEWAG said on Friday it is seeking a strategic partner for its Croatian cable TV operator and internet provider B.Net in a move to provide a dividend requested by its majority-owner, the Austrian state of Burgenland.
“We don’t’ sell our operations in Croatia. We will try to get a strong strategic partner for our future investments,” BEWAG CEO Hans Lukits told a news conference in Croatia.
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The Austrian state of Burgenland demands around 100 million euro ($147 million) in dividend from BEWAG to finance the refurbishment of a hospital, he added."It’s too early to say what share of B.Net it will sell and at which price, "Lukits added.
Besides, B.Net, BEWAG has wind farm developments in Croatia.
BEWAG bought earlier this year the country’s two largest cable TV operators for a total of 55 million euro and merged them under the name B.Net which offers as of next month digital and analog cable TV, fixed-line telephony and broadband internet.
BEWAG is already the biggest wind power producer in Austria and develops wind farms in Italy, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland. Besides energy production, BEWAG is active in providing telecoms services and manufacturing of electronic goods in central Europe.
($=0.6822 euro)