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* Government values bank at 15 bln euros
* Analyst values it at 11-12 bln eros
* Bank told to prepare for IPO
* Sees IPO in first half of 2015 at earliest
By Anthony Deutsch
THE HAGUE, Aug 23 (Reuters) - The Dutch government plans tosell lender ABN AMRO in an initial public offering(IPO) a year from now at the earliest but is unlikely to recoupits costs.
It put the value of the state-owned bank at about 15 billioneuros ($20 billion) - above some analysts' estimates and wellbelow the total that the Netherlands poured into the bank's 2008rescue and later additional support.
"We will get as good a price as possible," Prime MinisterMark Rutte told a press conference on Friday. "The chance ofselling with a profit is small. We will decide in a year if itis time and in the meantime we will ask ABN AMRO to get readyfor a listing."
By comparison, Britain is expected to make a profit when itsells part of its 39 percent stake in Lloyds Banking Group, possibly next month. However, its sale of Royal Bankof Scotland, whose disastrous 70 billion-plus euroacquisition of ABN in 2007 cost both British and Dutchgovernments dearly, looks a long way off.
"The (finance) minister's plans are the first step towardsentering the private market. If parliament agrees, the firstopportunity for an IPO would be the first half of 2015," GerritZalm, the ABN AMRO chief executive, said in a statement.
The Dutch government paid out nearly 40 billion euros torescue the domestic financial sector in 2008, when it providedcapital injections for banking and insurance group ING,insurer Aegon and financial group SNS Reaal, as wellas nationalising ABN AMRO.
Five years later the Dutch global banks are shadows of theirformer selves after numerous divestments and thousands of jobcuts have left them largely focused on their domestic market andEuropean backyard.
MUCH-NEEDED FUNDS
The rescue of ABN AMRO and its related entities cost 16.8billion euros initially, with subsequent support lifting thecost to 27.9 billion euros, the finance ministry said on Friday.
The government had to provide further support to the bankingsector in February, delivering a 10 billion euro package toprevent SNS Reaal from collapsing under property loan losses.
Keijser Capital analyst Nico van Geest puts ABN AMRO'scurrent value at about 11 to 12 billion euros.
The eventual sale of ABN AMRO, the third-largest bank, andSNS Reaal, No. 4, would be a welcome contribution to statefinances at a time when the Netherlands is struggling to meetthe European Union's deficit target of 3 percent of economicoutput.
ABN AMRO on Friday reported second-quarter net profit down 3percent to 402 million euros ($536.5 million) from the firstthree months as impairment charges on loans and otherreceivables increased by 292 million euros, reflecting theeffects of the recession and underlining the challenge thegovernment faces as it prepares for the bank's listing.
However, net interest income rose 4 percent to 1.36 billioneuros thanks to higher margins on loans, both for retail andcommercial banking, while net fee and commission income wassteady at 417 million euros.
While the economies of Germany and France grew faster thanexpected in the second quarter, pulling the euro zone out ofrecession, the Dutch economy has been hit hard by plunging houseprices and a decline in consumer spending, leaving it mired inrecession.
The government's economic forecaster, CPB, said the economyis now expected to shrink 1.25 percent this year, compared witha previous forecast of a 1 percent contraction. Growth is seenat 0.75 percent in 2014, against June's 1 percent forecast.
