Endesa Hires JP Morgan To Sell Chile Unit Smartcom-Report

SANTIAGO -(Dow Jones)- Spanish utility Endesa SA (ELE) has hired investment bank JP Morgan to sell its Chilean mobile telecommunications unit Smartcom, Chilean business paper Diario Financiero reported Tuesday, without citing sources.

Smartcom could also be listed on the local stock market, the paper added.

The paper cited Chief Executive Rafael Miranda as telling a group of investors in Madrid a few days ago that the company was worth $861 million.

Endesa wasn't immediately reachable for comment.

Speculation that the company - the smallest of the three remaining mobile operators in the South American country - was on the block has circulated in the market for years, and Endesa itself has said it was looking to sell non-core non-utility assets.

Smartcom ended 2004 with 1.539 million customers, up 32% from the end of 2003.

It also posted a 54.7% jump in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization, to EUR43.8 million from EUR28.3 million the year before.

Among possible buyers is Mexican wireless giant America Moviles SA (AMX), whose sister company, Telefonos de Mexico (TMX), has bought its way into the Chilean market.

Newspaper Web site: http://www.diariofinanciero.cl

-By Stephan Kueffner, Dow Jones Newswires; +56-2-460-8546; stephan.kueffner@dowjones.com (Jonathan House in Madrid contributed to this report)

(END) Dow Jones Newswires"

Posted to the site on 14th June 2005