Get A/S (UPC Norway) (Norway) - Dec 2007

unquote
01 December 2007

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Quadrangle and GS acquired the Norwegian cable TV company for an enterprise value of NOK 5.8bn. This marks the first Nordic investment for Quadrangle. Sector and management acted as large incentives for it to invest. Cable is familiar territory to the investor, as its main sectors include media and communications. Quadrangle also wanted to pick up where Candover had left off and continue to grow the company going forward.

Previous funding

Candover acquired Get AS (at the time UPC Norway) from Liberty Global in a E450m deal (February 2006, page 36). At the time, Candover acquired 90% of the shares, while management held 10% in the auction led by Deutsche Bank. Credit Suisse arranged the debt finance package and these facilities included senior debt and mezzanine as a subordinated loan without warrants. Get marked the first investment made from the Candover 2005 Fund, and the sale will be the fund’s sixth. Liberty Global also owned UPC Sverige which was sold to the Carlyle Group amd Providence Equity Partners in April 2006 for approximately SEK 3.269bn (May 2006, page 28).

People

Managing director John Arney and Candover director Julien Delano will step down from the board. Gordon Holmes, managing principle at Quadrangle Capital Partners worked on the deal. Gunnar Evensen is the CEO of UPC Norway.

Advisers

Equity - Goldman Sachs, (Other Consultant)Equity - Linklaters, Ian Bagshaw, Krister Hansen (Legal)Vendor - Clifford Chance LLP, Adam Signy (Legal)Vendor - Merrill Lynch , (Corporate Finance)

Sourced from: Nordic unquote" 69 (Jan 2008)