Israel To Sell State-Owned Arms Maker, IMI For $540 Million

The Israeli government is all set to sell Israel Military Industries (IMI) for an approximate $540 million, Haaretz, Israeli daily reportedMonday.

The company will be sold either directly to an investor or an investor group. The Israeli government has agreed to allow foreigners bidding on the company and will be permitted to buy up to 90% of the equity through a locally incorporated business, the newspaper reported.

“The government had approached international investment banks such as Merrill Lynch, BNP Paribas, Citibank and UBS, about managing the sale, which is slated to occur next year. Other banks that were approached to manage the sale included Rothschild, Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, Barclays, JPMorgan and Houlihan Lokey,” Ori Yogev, the director of the Government Companies Authority was quoted as saying by Haaretz.

Israel also plans to sell Israel Electric Corporation and Israel Aerospace Industries in whole or part apart from IMI.

After the sale of IMI is complete, the MoD plans to complete procurement of equipment worth $147 million annually through 2018.