spacetoday.net: Intelsat cancels IPO plans

Posted: Fri, May 21, 2004, 3:20 PM ET (1920 GMT)
Satellite communications company Intelsat announced Friday that it was canceling plans to conduct an initial public offering (IPO) of stock by the end of next month, and may instead seek a buyout. Intelsat announced its IPO plans earlier this year in accordance with a federal law, the ORBIT Act, that required an IPO by the end of June. However, earlier this month Congress passed a bill that extends the deadline for an IPO for at least 12 months; that legislation was signed into law by President Bush earlier this week. Intelsat CEO Conny Kullman said current market conditions, coupled with the regulatory extension, led the company to pull the IPO. Instead, Intelsat will work with Morgan Stanley and Merrill Lynch to explore "strategic alternatives" that could include the acquisition of Intelsat by another company. Private equity firms have shown an interest in satellite operators in recent months, with KKR buying Intelsat rival PanAmSat for over $4 billion last month.