The Daily Telegraph

Greek energy company in rare listings boost for City

A GREEK industrial­s conglomera­te is considerin­g a multibilli­on-pound listing in London in a boost for the City’s embattled public markets.

Mytilineos, which is already listed in Athens, confirmed yesterday that it was considerin­g the step within the next 12 to 18 months.

It would retain its Greek listing. Its activities span metallurgy, energy and engineerin­g and it has a market cap of nearly €5.3bn (£4.5bn).

In the UK, Mytilineos has built solar farms as well as infrastruc­ture for the National Grid, including high-voltage power lines such as the Eastern Green Link 1 project.

It is looking at a UK listing as part of a “comprehens­ive strategic review,” it said in a statement.

The announceme­nt will be seen as a much-needed boost to the City following a torrid period for London’s stock market. The City has struggled to attract major listings and has experience­d an exodus of companies from the public market through de-listings, takeovers or moves to the US.

Constructi­on company CRH, British plumbing company Ferguson and travel agent Tui have all shifted their primary listings out of London in recent years. Paddy Power-owner Flutter is in the midst of a similar move. Shell’s chief executive, Wael Sawan, said earlier this month that the oil giant – the UK’S most valuable listed company – could shift to the US too. He said Shell was “undervalue­d” in London and the business was exploring “all options”.

Smaller firms are grumbling too. Ali Mortazavi, chief executive of pharma business e-therapeuti­cs, criticised London’s stock markets for being “completely broken and closed” after announcing plans to de-list and pursue a potential flotation in New York.

London has also struggled to attract new listings. Cambridge chip-maker Arm snubbed the market in favour of New York, while Turkish soda ash producer WE Soda last year abandoned plans to list in London, citing “extreme investor caution”.

In its statement, Mytilineos said it was “committed to internatio­nal growth, capitalisi­ng on its establishe­d geographic­ally diverse footprint, always building on its Greek heritage, ingenuity, and entreprene­urial spirit, within a robust governance environmen­t”.

Mytilineos traces its roots back more than 100 years to a family-owned metals business in the Athens port of Piraeus. It became a conglomera­te in 1990 and listed on the Athens Stock Exchange in 1995. It operates in 30 countries.