MADRID, Nov 25 (Reuters) - The Basque savings banks BBK,
Kutxa and Vital are considering the sale of their 8.1 percent
stake in Spanish motorway company Itinere
"We are studying selling our joint stake in Itinere and we have a commitment (to sell) to Sacyr," the spokesman said, confirming a report in newspaper Cinco Dias.
At the time of the merger between Itinere and other Spanish motorway firm Europistas in November 2006, the three savings banks agreed a sale option on their 8.1 percent in Itinere to its core shareholder Sacyr at a price of 9.15 euros per share, subject to certain adjustments.
The savings banks will book capital gains of some 371 million euros from the sale of the stake, the Kutxa spokesman said.
A Sacyr spokeswoman said the stake sale option can be exercised either between November 2008 and May 2009 or between November 2010 and May 2011.
The Spanish constructor has put up various assets for sale, including its 90.1 percent stake in Itinere, with the aim of reducing its heavy debt pile of over 18 billion euros.
It is also selling its 20 percent stake in Spanish oil group
Repsol
The Itinere sale is taking longer than expected due to the
lack of interested buyers, with only an infrastructure fund
owned by Citigroup
In the event that Citigroup or Sacyr decides to sell off Itinere's motorways separately, various concessionary companies could be interested in buying them, the sources said.
"Citi is in talks not just with Sacyr, but also with other concessionaries to whom it could sell some of the motorways in Itinere's portfolio," said a source involved in the process.
"In the hypothetical case that there is no agreement with Citi, Sacyr could negotiate the sale of Itinere's assets directly with interested buyers," a local analyst said.
A source familiar with the operation said Barcelona-based
motorway company Abertis
Last week, a financial source said that Italy's Atlantia