Impsat rules out Telmex entry

Regional corporate services provider Impsat Fiber Networks has no plans to become Telmex's next South American acquisition, Impsat Argentina manager Marcelo Girotti told Argentine paper Infobae. Telmex (NYSE: TMX), Mexico's incumbent fixed line operator, entered South America through the recent acquisition of corporate services provider AT&T Latin America. Telmex executives said they would follow the ATTL purchase with complementary acquisitions, as the company looks to capture a large slice of the market for telecoms services to large, multinational companies doing business around Latin America. And indeed, the Mexican company signed an agreement last week to bring Brazil's Embratel into its portfolio. However, Impsat - which offers services in most of the region - is not for sale, Girotti said. Nor would Telmex enter the Argentine company through the purchase of a minority shareholder's position, Girotti said. Investment bank Morgan Stanley owns 19% of Impsat, a consequence of the company's 2002 bankruptcy resolution, but Morgan Stanley wants to hold on to its stake, on the expectation that Impsat's value will grow significantly in the next couple of years, he said. Impsat is growing strong, especially in Argentina, where it expects to invest 20mn pesos (US$7mn) this year, he said, adding investments include nodes for San Juan and Puerto Madryn. Together with Colombia, Argentina accounts for about a quarter of Impsat's revenues, which were US$220mn in 2003. Impsat's other countries of operation include Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela and the United States.