Bord Gáis is to commence the tender process to appoint a lead corporate financial advisor to advise the Board and management of Bord Gáis in relation to the sale of its energy business, Bord Gáis Energy.

The financial advisor will provide all corporate financial advisory services in respect of the sale. Specifically the corporate financial advisor will manage the sales process to completion, including providing a valuation assessment to Bord Gáis, evaluating proposals and leading commercial negotiations. The corporate advisor will work closely with the advisors appointed by the National Treasury Management Agency (NTMA) on behalf of NewEra.

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The first stage of the tender process, the pre-qualification questionnaire (PQQ), will commence today with the publication of the notice on eTenders, the public procurement website. Tenderers will have until 9th August 2012 to respond. The intention is to invite up to 15 Tenderers to participate in the second round of the process, the formal Invitation to Tender (ITT). Following the PQQ and ITT evaluation, a contract will be awarded to the successful application.

John Mullins, chief executive of Bord Gáis said: "This is the first step in the process of preparing for the sale of Bord Gáis Energy. We expect to appoint a lead financial advisor by late autumn, and subject to all other conditions being satisfactory to our shareholder, the sale could be concluded in late 2013. As chief executive, my priorities throughout this process are to our shareholders, customers and staff. We will endeavour to generate the maximum value possible for the State from the sale of Bord Gáis Energy, and throughout the sale process, we are committed to continuing to meet the needs of our customers and our staff."

(CD/GK)