STOCKHOLM (Thomson Financial) - The Finnish state does not oppose selling off its holdings in a number of companies, including possibly TeliaSonera, which is considered a popular acquisition target, Swedish daily Dagens Nyheter reported on the weekend.

'We have nothing against changing ownership structures, quite the opposite,' Pekka Timonen, the head of the Ownership Steering Unit at Finnish Prime Minister Matti Vanhanen's office, said in an interview with the paper.

The Finnish state owns holdings in a long line of companies, and, with the exception of three groups, the government is entitled to sell off its shares as it sees fit without requesting authorisation from parliament, he explained.

'The companies we have identified as strategically important are Neste Oil, (airline) Finnair and (electric company) Fortum, meaning we wish to maintain majority ownership in them,' Timonen said.

The same is not true of the Finnish state's 13.7-percent stake in Swedish-Finnish telecom operator TeliaSonera, which could possibly end up on the bidding block, according to the Dagens Nyheter report.

Neighbouring Sweden has already stated its intention to sell its 37.2-percent holdings in the company.

If the Finnish assets were added to that, a buyer would have the chance to easily gain control over a majority of the shares in TeliaSonera, making it an even more attractive target for acquisitions than it already is.

France Telecom voiced 'interest' in TeliaSonera last month, while Russian Alfa Group and Norwegian Telenor have repeatedly been mentioned as potential buyers.



tf.TFN-Europe_newsdesk@thomson.com

afp/ejp



COPYRIGHT



Copyright Thomson Financial News Limited 2008. All rights reserved.

The copying, republication or redistribution of Thomson Financial News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Financial News.