NTL profits by €200m from sale of Irish business

THE sale of NTL’s Irish business delivered a profit on disposal of almost €200 million, the cable TV operator said yesterday.

The company sold its Irish subsidiary for €325m in May. It reported net income of stg£73.5m (€106m) for the three months to June, after a net loss of stg£250m (€360m) in the same period last year. It said the Irish deal, coupled with an improved operating performance, were the main reasons for better numbers.

It used proceeds of the sale to pay down over €300m in long-term debt, easing cashflow pressures by cutting ongoing interest costs. But as of the end of June it still has more than €2 billion outstanding.