MONTREAL – The Quebec Superior Court has approved BCE’s planned sale to a consortium led by the Teacher’s Private Capital, it was announced Friday. Some shareholders were fighting the deal, but the court “dismissed all claims asserted by or on behalf of certain holders of Bell Canada debentures.”
“We are very pleased with the Superior Court’s decisions. On every point of contention, the court ruled in favour of BCE,” said BCE and Bell Canada chief legal officer Martine Turcotte. “The court’s decisions affirm our long-standing position that the claims of these debenture holders are without merit and that BCE acted in accordance with its rights and obligations with respect to the debenture holders.”
The debenture holders have until March 17 to appeal the decision to the Québec
Court of Appeal.
The deal though still has to be approved by the CRTC. The broadcast regulator will reconvene hearings into the planned sale on March 11, after two days of hearings in February.
CRTC chair Konrad von Finckenstein delayed the hearing, saying the CRTC and BCE needed more time to exchange information and digest the information provided during hearings on February 25 and 26.
A consortium led by the Teachers’ Private Capital, the private investment arm of the Ontario Teacher’s Pension Plan, along with Providence Equity Partners and Madison Dearborn Partners, bid $51 billion, debt included, in 2007 for Canada’s largest telco. The sale is subject to CRTC approval since BCE has media assets, namely CTVglobemedia and Bell ExpressVu.
Subject to any appeal by the debenture holders and the timing and terms of such an appeal, BCE expects the transaction to close in the first part of the second quarter of 2008, stated the telco in a media release.
