OTTAWA – During Wednesday’s conference call with financial analysts, Bell Canada Enterprises CEO said the company continues to explore all options on the future of Telesat, including a much-talked-about IPO, but that interest remains very high among other satellite companies and investment groups wishing to purchase the satellite operator.
Sabia said BCE plans to meet with a number of those groups in the coming weeks. "We have some pretty interesting options with respect to Telesat," he said.
In the meantime, Sabia and the potential suitors should be cheered by the stable financial results at Telesat, which reported on its third quarter results, ended September 30th, yesterday.
The company’s third-quarter operating revenue of $113.5 million represented a 1% increase from the same period of 2005.
While Telesat posted net earnings applicable to common shares of $19.8 million, 22% lower than Q3 ’05, included in operating expenses are certain one-time charges to compensation resulting from executive changes in September 2006 (the retirement of CEO Larry Boisvert). Without these one-time expenses, the company’s third quarter net earnings applicable to common shares would have decreased by 2% from the same period in 2005.
For the first nine months of 2006, operating revenue totaled $351 million (2005: $357.2 million). Net earnings applicable to common shares were $84.4 million (2005: $71.1 million). Cash flows from operating activities were $171.5 million for the first nine months of 2006, compared to $175.2 million for the same period in 2005, a decrease of $3.7 million or 2%.
"The decrease is mainly due to the special one-time compensation arrangements for both the new and outgoing presidents," said the press release.
