SA: Bid deadline passes for SA power assets

AAP General News (Australia)
12-06-1999
SA: Bid deadline passes for SA power assets

ADELAIDE, Dec 6 AAP - Final bids for South Australia's biggest electricity business
were lodged today, but the government warned it could be weeks before the new owner was
known.

It is believed three major consortiums put in bids for the electricity retail and distribution
business, the first asset to be offloaded as part of the major disposal program.

They include US utility Edison Mission; a consortium led by the US's UtiliCorp United;
and a group comprising Hongkong Electric Holdings Ltd and Cheung Kong Infrastructure Holdings
Ltd.

The successful bidder will hold a 97-year lease on the asset, which could fetch the
government up to $3.7 billion.

The bids are expected to be opened tonight in the presence of various witnesses, including
Auditor-General Ken MacPherson and the leasing process probity auditor, to ensure accountability.

Bids will then be considered by a six-member evaluation committee.

Treasurer Rob Lucas said today the process could take more than a few days, but he
hoped the preferred bidder would be named before the end of the year.

"Whether it takes us days or whether it still takes us a few weeks in terms of trying
to resolve any legal issues ... it's certainly going to be relatively short compared to
the two years we've all had to endure (since the privatisation was first proposed)," he
said.

"So I'm excited by the end of the process, but of course this is just the first stage,
there are another five businesses after that, albeit this is the biggest."

Other businesses - including the power generators Optima Energy, Flinders Power, ElectraNet
and Synergen - will be leased next year.

AAP sn/cjh/de

KEYWORD: POWER SA (CARRIED EARLIER)

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