By: E&P Staff Hollinger International Inc., publisher of the Chicago Sun-Times and about 100 other Chicago-area papers, said Tuesday it has agreed to sell its majority interest in the Great West Newspaper Group Ltd. chain of Alberta newspapers, and that it might shed the rest of its remaining Canadian assets.
Hollinger said its subsidiary, Hollinger Canadian Publishing Holdings Co., has entered into agreements to sell its 70% interest in Great West and its 50% interest in Fundata Canada Inc. to Jamison Newspapers Inc. and Glacier Ventures International Corp. for approximately C$47.1 million, or US$40.5 million.
Great West publishes 16 papers, mostly in Alberta, and includes a web printing division that offers commercial printing to its chain papers, and commercial customers. Fundata is a Toronto-based provider of mutual fund data and analysis.
When the sale of Great West to Jamison is completed, Hollinger said, Glacier will purchase a 50% interest in Great West from Jamison.
Hollinger said that it expects the transactions to close by the end of the year.
Hollinger said it is in discussions with Glacier concerning the possible sale of its remaining Canadian assets.
"Over the past two years, through our strategic process, we have undertaken a series of initiatives designed to maximize value for our shareholders. The transactions we are announcing today represent another step toward that end," Hollinger Chairman and CEO Gordon A. Paris said in a statement.
In the two years since allegations surfaced that former Hollinger Chairman Conrad Black pocketed hundreds of millions in improper payments and fees from the company, the chain has sold off several of its largest papers, including the Daily Telegraph in London, England, and the Jerusalem Post in Israel.
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