BET seeks Biffa interest
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• BET is planning to sell its waste-management subsidiary, Biffa, or allow it to form a strategic partnership, as part of a bid to achieve annual savings of 220m.
Describing Biffa as the "UK market leader in waste management", BET says it has had several approaches from European waste management companies interested in Biffa during the past two years, and is now "entering serious discussions with some parties".
"Biffa has enormous, but expensive development potential," says BET managing director Nicholas Wills, who takes over as BET chairman in May following the retirement of Sir Timothy Bevan.
The move to sell or redevelop Biffa is the latest in a number of measures begun last summer to streamline BET's structure. These include the sale of a 28% stake in Thames Television. The group's yearend debt is expected to be just under 2500m with analysts forecasting profits of around 2225m up to 31 March, compared with 2322.3m a year ago.
BET will not say who it is talking to about Biffa, but Leigh Environmental group services director Edward Wilkinson told CM: "Anybody of our size is bound to be interested. We would certainly look at a prospectus."