Orkla Media's board agreed earlier this summer to sell the company with its large chain of local newspapers to the firm launched by Montgomery, Mecom.
The deal called for Montgomery to raise funds that would guarantee 70-80 percent of the NOK 7 billion purchase price, before a contract is signed. Montgomery had signalled intentions to raise roughly half the money from investors and half in borrowed funds.
That’s proving to be difficult. Uneasy financial markets and uncertainty over the value of some of Orkla’s Danish newspapers has scared off several of the investment funds that were expected to participate.
Newspaper Dagens Næringsliv reported Thursday that if Montgomery doesn't manage to raise enough funds this week, the entire deal can collapse.
The paper reported that several of the investment funds contacted by Montgomery have lost interest in the project. Other investors have asked for more time, while others view the project as too risky given tough newspaper competition in Denmark.
Orkla chairman Stein Erik Hagen claims he's not worried about the deal and expects it to go through. "I'm on holiday at the moment, but still think we're following the timeframe we had set up," he told DN.
